Our goal is to get enough rental income to cover all of our expenses so that everything we earn from our day jobs is just money we can put towards living the life that we want to live. 

@Shannon K. if the ARV is sufficient enough to cover your renovation and CC, then the short answer is yes.

@Michael Newman,I use these sources:current T12 & rent roll (if available)comparable rents from broker's OM packagecomparable rents from neighboring properties (MLS, rentometer.com, umovefree.com, calling to the property)expenses provided by management companies that have similar properties under managementexpenses (ranges) from NAA survey - usually outdated but give a 10000 ft picture and helps establishing some baselines.

Unfortunately, my current employment will not cover the additional properties but with the tenants' rent I could pay for all said expenses.

I am mainly familiar with the deal structures in which I am a passive investor and that only covers a small percentage of the possible structures.#2 - You pay $50k as the sponsor, you raise $950k from private investors and you finance $4 million with the bank...$5 million total purchase price. 

The forums are a great way to get a big-picture perspective on the opportunities in REI and also for specific guidance on a particular property you're looking at.  

If it's just a single family home you could look at getting a million dollar umbrella policy to cover any issues. 

Question: how did you structure these deals as to cover your investment in case a seller changed their mind?

@Mike Vann it covers the basics, but his next book "The advanced guide to real estate" goes even deeper and is probably what you'll want to get next. 

Seems like I'd have to get the property at a low enough price so that god forbid the seller has to foreclose there would be room for the fc proceeds would cover the seller and then my partner right?