I live in an area where cash flow is fairly easy to come by but appreciation is low.

If I have an investor put up the money, what is a fair return on his money?

If its like India, which I have spent a fair bit of time, labor is very cheap compared to the US.

Let me preface this in saying that I am not giving you everything I tell them, as it wouldn't be fair to the investment they have made with me to share that information completely.Real estate investing is something that can provide much of what you are looking for in life.

There are certainly a fair number of people with no experience, but we've also got tons of experienced members as well.

I thought that during the inspection they would do a "rent reasonableness" survey to determine what a fair rent would be.

So, be careful about putting down more EM than necessary, and be prepared to play by the bank's rules, even when it's not particularly fair.

That included gutting to the studs, joists, re-plumbing everything (tub and toilet were re-located), re-wiring, insulation, moisture-resistant drywall, new window, new basic tub, subfloor, underlayment, fairly cheap tile on floor and tub surround, sink/vanity from lowes, basic toilet, paint, etc.

They want you to have "skin in the game" and then finance construction up to 80% of the arv for construction costs.

You might have a fair deal if it is truly 20% below market (many seek 30%), but, you may not be getting any deal at all.