You play with the profitability with higher or lower down payment.

Bonus question: 😁FAFSA (federal student aid application) excludes balances of 401K and IRA, so if the real estate bought and rented out by SDIRA were an asset of the SDIRA, I am hoping the asset would then be excluded from the FAFSA calculation.

Family will play on emotions when trouble hits. 

When an IRA receives income from a trade or business on a regular or repeated basis, it can become subject to a tax known as UBIT which is meant to level the playing field and protect tax-paying businesses from unfair competition. 

Do you ever see a reason when going for an appreciation play makes sense over strictly cash flow?

@Sherry AddyI do have a rental in millington and I know it’s the farthest drive in our portfolio You are right on the prIces They have gone up In last three years the value play Is In a fIxer upper nowadays requIrIng 15k rehabsBest of luck in your search

Account ClosedIncome taxes are normally not calculated in cash-on-cash return calculations because everyone's tax situation is different.For sake of comparison - the cash-on-cash return should be comparable on a level playing field.Person A - $100 return on a $1000 investment.

The conundrum is that I’m playing with speculations on the housing market.

Leave those to the highly experienced and often local investors who understand and do not mind the high-risk play of investing in low cost rentals. 

Also, it really only comes into play if/when the bank completely takes the house back over.