Just to be honest some people are not made to stomach the highs & lows in this category. 

Stomach was all bubbly.

What scares me the most however are the limited term loans (often 5 years) that are based on a 20 year amortization schedule -- Also, the relative uncertainty of being at the mercy of what the prevailing rates are when it comes time to refinance is a bit hard to stomach for me.So many here are proponents of Commercial, and I trust for good reason.

I've had people to quit working for me 2 hours after they started due to getting sick and not being able to handle the work conditions of plumbing and sewer work.......It is not for a person with a weak stomach or weak muscles.

If you can stomach it (and find an okay deal), consider using your VA loan to get into a 4-plex instead of a duplex!

Once you determine if you have the stomach to deal with the detritus of problem people and are not ready to put yourself in the "tired landlord" category of Sellers, here's something to chew on:The long term solution is to systems.

I know my experience was one of thousands, but this was the biggest kick in the stomach i had ever had.

Part of me was sick to my stomach believing that if the roof was that bad the inside would be worse. 

My default philosophy is buy-and-hold with cash flow properties but it's hard to stomach the asset values in these other markets are most likely going to run past Providence in the next 10 years.

If you don't have the stomach (and the cash reserves), I'd stay out until I see prices/values fall.