I try to keep 6 months per property worth since that's normally what banks want.

Many people purchase the wrong properties and then can't afford repairs, vacancies and they don't have a clue regarding how to manage properties and don't have a clue regarding what to do when the tenant from hell destroys the property and does not pay rent for 6 to 9 months while you are paying the mortgage and an attorney.If you a gambling woman with huge suitcases full of money then jump right in and take your chances not with real estate, but take your chances trying to find an honest and competent person who will guide you in the right direction like you are their mother.

To your point, that is all lost income and not to mention you need to pay for any inspection past the 1st one (no clue how much section 8 inspections cost opposed to a normal inspection).

He clearly doesn't get investing or that refinancing after renovation is just a normal thing for many people.There is a reason that Fannie Mae allows up to 10 financed properties per borrower.Stephanie

@Alex Forest nice plots.Since fed is printing money like crazy, I thought that using gold to replace US dollar to measure housing price makes more sense and can provide us a more realistic view of how expansive it is.My current feeling is that the price is relatively low, and I might keep buying for a while. if the real estate price normalized by gold increases above 700, I will sell.

Single family homes/condo are hot due to a lot of people moving into the area coupked with lower than normal supply.

I'm normally in the opposite situation where i offer a discount to get a highly qualified tenant so i am surprised by this situation. 

I got them to come down 20K in price at inspection, it's a duplex (not a normal one, a studio on one side and a 3 bedroom on the other).

Hello All,Preparing a rental for tenants and just realized that there is a longer than normal lead time on the availability of kitchen cabinets.Ikea are proving far too slow.Currently beginning the process with Home Depot.Does anybody have any suggestions where I can get a new kitchen quickly?

Is this something the servicer would normally let you do?