About removing the pool...My first, and well my only, rehab was on a 1973 3bd 2ba rancher (purchased for $134k) in North Carolina.

This is probably state-specific, but you can go there and search "rentals" to get an idea, and maybe even ask.In fact, the American Homeowners Resource Center at http://www.ahrc.com/new/index.php/src/news has a North Carolina section.

I am about a hour north of Atl and hour south of Chatt.

In my county, Wake County, North Carolina, everything is online so you can see what a person paid for the house and what others in the area are selling for.

Thanks for the warm welcome.In terms of where in Boston....well I actaully live North Shore almost in NH.

I've got a single family home rented in North Carolina, Mississippi, and other states.

I live in Collin County, which is a county just north of Dallas, Texas.

I'd love to get one started but I am leaving for a month to teach ABoriginals up North and so I won't be here.

Rick North Georgia

By the way, here's a publication from the North Carolina Real Estate Commission and the Ohio Association of Realtors stating specifically that you legally do not need earnest money for a contract to be valid.