I like rehabs, but have no confidence in my local area, in fact my whole state is over-inflated, I see zero opportunity locally but also am intimidated by travel.

God only knows what will happen when the market corrects fully and rates rise.

That way it’s not just sitting in account losing real value to inflation.

If this is the case - maybe you can ask him for the specific form that shows the rental income/expenses(Schedule E if personally owned or form 8825 if held inside of a partnership).If he doesn't want to provide the form at all - I would think it to be a red flag and he possibly inflated the expenses on the tax return.

It is possible to substitute your active income with passive income, but it will take a strong knowledge base, with a healthy dose of hard work and also the wave of the market rising.

Some personal thoughts and opinions about property values I have as an Investor and Realtor I thought I could share.Home prices will continue to rise nationally and Milwaukee, Wisconsin will be no exception as far as I am concerned.

Since there is no inspection contingency the net to seller I anticipate is not falsely inflated which is the most impressive part.

Everyone has a credit (the "unified credit") of ~$5.5MM (indexed for inflation).

Among the factors to consider in making these decisions, are risk tolerance, availability of cash, creditability, greed, financial stature, market conditions and outlook, inflation/appreciation potential, what age/phase of one's life one is in and of course each individual deal or property's characteristics. 

This may make more sense if you are in the heart of the city and believe the land value will rise significantly over the years.