Ive had advice from others in the local market including...start out buying 3/2 single family homes in a stable neighborhood....preferably brick, less than 10 years old, 1% rule for renting(Ive heard 2% on one of BP podcasts) ....avoid homes in less desirable rundown areas, avoid multi units...buy north of town( thats where the city is growing) I live in a city of 65,000 with median income of $46,000 and median age 35...

There are pockets of less desirable areas, and the next block is perfectly nice and the homes are in good repair.

I am currently analyzing a deal that situated only 2 blocks from Drexel's Campus (Philadelphia), it's a highly desired location for students.

The people that succeed are the ones that have such a burning desire to do so that nothing will stop them.  

They couldn't just cut the roots at their property line because that would kill our tree, and we could complain, causing them problems, etc.The thought occurred to me that if I leave the tree there, maybe it makes their property less desirable for another developer, and therefore worth less, so that would be an advantage to me when I'm ready to pursue their property?

Are they over-qualified, is the property highly-desirable (in which case I'm curious why the first applicant would be spinning their wheels in negotiations), are they hoping you'll overlook something in their application (running away from an eviction)?

I really do not have much desire to become a wholesaler but it seems I might have to get involved in marketing to find the volume of deals I am looking to do and not get other investors scraps or really awful wholesale deals.

A fellow BP investor, Account Closed, Sean Jones, and Dhru Das and I went to three different properties with Aaron and Sean as they guided us through the process of evaluating the property, determining what sort of rehab would be necessary to produce a desired ARV - extremely insightful experience.We decided that a property that will need a gut rehab but is lower in cost will provide the best margin.  

I can look up the BAH in the local area, which lets me know what the going rents are, I ask at the base housing office for desirable neighborhoods, and I aim for the E-4 to E-5 plus O-1-3 tier when I analyze a house. 

And as far as I know, owning one's own home is a highly desirable trait that bankers look for and you DEFINITELY want to make bankers happy.My advice would be to get in touch with a mortgage specialist who understands investing before you make any decisions.