I feel that asset class is overvalued heavily at the moment unless you can find the right deal which is really tough as many are chasing that today versus 4 to 5 years ago.With retail I do not care about if that brand is around in 10 or 20 years years.

Right now I've been working most heavily with Chicago, Kansas City, Indianapolis, Philly and Baltimore.

I'm guessing that's not what you're looking for, though, because they're so heavily regulated that there is really little opportunity to be shady.If you're looking for hard money, it's all over the map, but I can tell you what I ask for. 1st lien with purchase price at 70% of ARV or below, money paid out in tiers, based on project progress, 4 points on the front end and 12% interest-only (essentially 1% of the loan is paid back each month) with  6-month amortization period.

Are you finding them through referrals, area specific, or just doing recon on who is most heavily involved with moving REO's or short sale specialists?

Then you can set up whatever arrangement you want with the attorney.Yes they look at the income of the property more heavily but a lender still has certain standards.

If the unit was especially heavily used, replace all of the windows.

I think you're on the fast track to being a heavily seasoned landlord.

Plus, I would I wonder if maintenance might be lower in a STR since often times people are not really using the property's facilities as heavily as someone who lived there full time would. i.e.

Hi, Can some one recommend a book that focuses heavily on " evaluating a property " ? 

This is something I've researched heavily and I think the best route is to start off doing it yourself, for the reasons listed above, but to include PM fees in your calculations (even if you aren't using one to start).