The other component here is understanding the bank's business as well.

Its great that the seller is will to carry a note in a seller 2nd as well, that will help reduce your require monthly payment with the right lenders.

I know the market pretty well.

At any given time there are countless C/D neighborhood properties in Philadelphia that can be leased to a section 8 voucher recipient that cash flows well. 

I've brokered a number of 1031 transactions and can help with that as well. 

Buying a portfolio might lead you to making decisions you don't have the experience and foresight to make well.

And you can be a landlord that gets a very poor return because they haven't utilized their space well by changing the layout.

@Tristan Kelly hope this goes well for you!

I'm a contractor based in Maryland and DC, so the renovation aspect is well within my expertise, having done numerous projects for other developers and general contractors.However, I'm facing a challenge when it comes to choosing the interior design elements, such as bathroom tiles, colors, sizes, fixtures, etc.

There are a couple opportunities thats on MLS currently, and I am crunching through my math and it seems to work out well (positive cash flow, decent cap rate).Some key assumptions I hope still holds true today:  low vacancy rate in general. ~1000-1200/month for a room in a single family house / duplex.