No Dads in their lives, not doing well in school, no interests, no skills, little or no money, no direction, living only for the moment.

Based on the communication skills that have shown on this thread; I assume you're not getting a response from the owner because of how you're approaching the situation with him...

I don't think it has to do with expecting appreciation as much as it has to do with poor analytical skills...though I could be wrong on that.This is why -- these days -- you need to find the off-market deals to be consistently successful...

Any suggestions on what skills I should have (for example, answering phone) or how I should market to motivated sellers that is unique.

The skill of being an effective LL is more of an art than a science.Happy investing!

The skill of the photographer definitely does not increase with the price of the camera.

There are costs that eat into their income.I've had no shortage of people see my house and I have a no pet policy.A weight limit on dogs has no bearing on whether they will tear up your house or not. 10 pound dogs piss all over the place too. and 50 pound dogs could be very docile.One of these days, I'm going to do a pet experiment, and see how much better the applicant pool is.

It would not be a problem to find renters as there's a shortage for short-term in this area.

It sounds like you trust Joe, however it is important to understand trusting his integrity is different than trusting his skills and knowledge.

That's about how I remeber it, other than the accounting, not many files were noted on any computer list and never scanned, beyond my skills you know.