@Michael P.Welcome.Check out the Start Here page http://www.biggerpockets.com/starthereCheck out BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginner's Guide - A fantastic free book that walks through many of the key topics of real estate investing.Check out the free BiggerPockets Podcast - A weekly podcast with interviews and a ton of great advice.

Also with FHA you can go up to a 4 unit, that may or may not be something doable but it's something to think about as you look at getting started.Here is the ultimate guide to tenant screening, which is probably the single best source to get started with.

Eventually, I'd probably want a property manager to handle everything and just collect a check, but I feel like as a new investor I need to have some experience to really know what I'm doing, and ultimately to have a comparison point in terms of value I'm getting for paying a property management company.

@Alan MalicseWelcome.Check out the Start Here page http://www.biggerpockets.com/starthereCheck out BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginner's Guide - A fantastic free book that walks through many of the key topics of real estate investing.Check out the free BiggerPockets Podcast - A weekly podcast with interviews and a ton of great advice.

I ultimately want to rehab a house.

Ultimately, it came down to what others have mentioned, and that is - do I currently have a better use for that money?

Ultimately you both hope that would be by buying and selling deals where they can get a commission, but if you give them other prospects they get fed until you bring them your own business.

The values in GP are 300-400K.They tried to get businesses going around the stadium before the Olympics in '96, but it never took off, because only during Braves games is when there were customers - so, who can survive that way?

Adding on the city water at the end for a buyer that ultimately got cold feet was the biggest budget hit that we took.

If you haven't yet, be sure to check out the The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing and The BiggerPockets Podcast.