Way cheaper than Hard money, and most credit unions or local banks can get that done in less that a week.

The residence will likely have lower mortgage payments and cheaper property taxes, Downsides: Financing and finding the right deal will possibly eliminate my current assets and I will be unable to have skin in the game for a different investment.

I'm all about stretching a buck, but have learned with pain and experience that most things that are cheaper on the front end are more hassle than they're worth.  

Your rates will be waaaay cheaper than using HML.  

It would cheaper and easier to start with toll-free, but if you think it gives you a better response and more qualified leads, I'll jump on the local number.

So, while driving for dollars, for instance, is a cheaper strategy, it's more difficult to execute for me.

The best way to learn rehab cost is to find a guy at reia or recommended who does work and offer him a little money to walk a property with you, point out the problems and "common pricing" for these items, thats not the time to ask can I get it done cheaper, you want to be able to look at a house and throw a rehab cost in 20-30 mins or less, so you will get common ball park pricing for items.

The houses around them just aren't worth it and cheaper houses. 

Construction costs and material costs are cheaper because you are selling a 250k house to a first time buyer, not a 800k house in Poet's Corner.

An investor needing to execute a 1031 Exchange may be more than willing to take a neutral or even slightly negative cash flow and bank on appreciation and rent escalation, because it's cheaper than paying capital gains.