You can give yourself confidence by running numbers and giving a confidence range to the assumptions.

@Lorenzo LopezPretend a map of Boston is a pool of water.

@Jennifer Fernéz I run sum numbers for you with our tool, see comments and pics below before refinancing and post refinancing .Financial Breakdown: Purchase Price: $200,000 Mortgage (LTV 80%): $160,000 Interest Rate: 6% (30-Year Amortization) Mortgage Monthly Payment: $959Upfront Costs: Down Payment (20%): $40,000 Closing Costs (3.5%): $7,000 Renovation Costs: $15,000 1 Month of Carrying Costs During Renovation: $1,548Total Upfront Required: $63,548Year One Rent: Monthly Rent Income: $2,000 1 Month Rent Losses during renovations (-$2,000): -$167/month distributed over 12 months Total Rent Income: $22,000 per year => $ 1,833 per monthMonthly Expenses: Mortgage Payment: $959 Property Tax (Assuming $3,000/year): $250 per month Property Insurance (Assumption): $100 per month Utilities (Hydro, Gas, Water): $275 per month Assuming 5% Vacancy: $92 Assuming 0 % Repairs & Maintenance first year because unit has been recently renovated Total Monthly Expenses: $1,676Monthly Net Cash Flow: $157Post-Renovation Refinancing Strategy after 12 months:So far, we’ve purchased the property, completed renovations, and rented it out.Next, you can approach the bank for a refinance to consolidate a portion of your initial investment into a mortgage.

I a factoring in the replacement of the AC unit and potentially the water heater, and the cosmetic thins (I would do myself) to get it to rentable standard.

It's not easy in DFW right now due to the price runups over the past few years and now slowdown in the market.What price range do you want to be in?

You should look for an "investor-friendly" PM company that knows how it is just dipping your toe into the water of buying a home/condo/townhome.. 

In that scenario (right now unlikely for the next few years) you may get under water if you didn’t account for it.I never found a bank that would do fix rate for more than 5 years.

They range from 50 units to 500 units.

A buddy of mine just built a duplex on the water in Placencia

From what we can find, houses with piers in the neighborhood have largely had to go very deep (90-120 ft), so estimates from local foundation contractors are ranging from 70-130k.