I just want to see how much weight several properites put on me compared to the one i have now.

I am working on an article to compare different markets.As far as "becoming familiar with the rental market", I don't know if you mean the health of the rental market, the neighborhoods, or talking to property managers.

It's a great source to see what comparable rentals are going for (and to see if they are BOOKED or VACANT in the peak months, how quickly they fill up, etc.), and you might even consider contacting a few of the people on there to ask them about their vacancy rates, maintenance/property management, etc.

Compare prices on Realtor.com with the rents listed on Craigslist and you might get a good idea.

If not, you should consider it, that way you can compare the various companies with one another and make sure you choose the one that best suits your needs.

Now you have the opportunity to compare.

This seems slow compared to very active investors, however this is building me passive cash flow for my future.

Compare your cash outlay of a down-payment and closing costs versus the down-payment, hard money fees, interest and closing costs of fixing up a distressed property.You may end up with more built-in equity and a slightly higher return by fixing up a property yourself (maybe), but your risks and time invested go up too.Continued success!

The gross building area must be consistently developed for the subject property and all comparables that the appraiser uses.

I initially planned on getting out 40K of profit; looking at the current comparable now I am pretty sure I can get 80K to 85K out; no problem there, but I am starting to question if it is a good idea to flip the property at this point, or is it better to hold it and find financing to get my money and my originally planned profit out to reinvest while holding the property and still be able to make a small cash flow.