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I thought this was a fantastic deal until I was told that some of the bigger banks are offering the same products with interest rates below 3%.

Sorry I'm late to the party, but to piggy-back off of @Russell Brazil, one of the places off Gude in Rockville called ABKA Granite & Marble did a fantastic job with the granite installation when we renovated my wife's townhouse to get it ready for sale. 

the list is fantastic (still learning how to use it though lol!!)

Maybe a 70/30 deal... maybe. 12% and no points for two years is a fantastic rate from the HML.

assuming you get 4 deals like that your only going to be hopefully netting 1600 a month, decent on a yearly basis i guess for a return on capital but not too fantastic as a source of income to live off of entirely

Retail buyers see a disparity and they just assume it's "over priced" so the correction was fantastic for us. 

@Jason UtleyBe sure to try a search here on BP as there has been many a fantastic thread about the processes of buying REO's, including what to offer depending upon how long it has been listed.  

What a fantastic town and area.

Plus @Cheryl Packham's fantastic checklist.