A local agent he contacted said they would recommend listing at $11kAn improved property in the area recently sold for $95k (1/1, 702 SF):  http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Costilla-Coun...I'm such a newbie working on investing here in FL and have never worked a deal in raw land, so I have no idea how to steer him in the right direction.  

Hasn't steered me wrong in anything, whether it be real estate or car repairs (specifically Jiffy Lube trying to charge me $60 for $20 worth of filters I can get on Amazon and replace myself).EDIT: That said, $197 really isn't a lot.

I believe a lot of investors steer clear because of the high unemployment and crime, I think investing in Baltimore provides employment opportunities for local businesses and making affordable homes available to families helps stabilize communities and hopefully drives demand. 

I could keep going with some out of the box ideas but until you determine how involved you want to be with the degree of risk it is very difficult to steer you in a particular direction. 

Any scary neighborhoods you would steer clear of?

Posting a thread like this will attract all the providers and they will try to steer you towards their market and product.

I also don't have 25% for a down payment so that is another reason I am steering away from conventional financing.

If your Realtor is still trying to steer you to a particular lender, you might want to consider another realtor.

I DID do a LOT of reading and studying what those prohibited transactions were/are to make sure we steered clear of them.

Well again, most of these issues would be resolved by working under a seasoned real estate professional that could teach them the ropes and could steer them along the straight and narrow.My recommendation is for you to go ahead and get your license for the basic knowledge and the credentials to legally do your business, then find an investor that is buying for themselves and succeeding in this business and volunteer your services for strictly for the education.For more of this soapbox speech and practical tips on how you can actually find that person, here is another link!!