A lot of the internet is full of people talking about subjects that they aren't very versed in.

I'm new to real estate also so I don't have much advice on the subject just yet.

If it's not legal then the sale should at a minimum be subject to it being made legal.

You interview investors that have already bought property in the past and find out where they want to buy and what kind of properties that one"Terms" means using creative financing which you can learn about here at biggerpocketsThere is "subject to existing financing" or "sub to"which means you buy a property and take over the payments and get the deedThere is a lease option assignment where you lease option from the seller and sell your paperwork to a renter for a feeThere is buying on a wraparound mortgage or installment land contract and renting out the propertyFor a free and clear property with no loans, you can buy on installment sale and rent out the propertyOffering the seller a cash offer and a terms offer I think is the easiest way for you to make money in real estate both when starting out and when you are established

If they want more than that, they you way want to walk away.You do want to look for two things, either cash flow (will the property rent for more than PITI + expenses including maintenence)or you want to get a bunch of equityor both equity and cash flowYou can make money in any of the above casesMAO only applies if you need to do repairs to rent it   Most of the property that you will look at subject-to is lived in my the owner or was recently lived in.

The arena of private money lending, also called “Shadow Banking” in Europe, is not subject to the same regulatory requirements as are the depository institutions.

Frequently, the property itself does not appear to be in the 100 yr. flood plain (Zone AE), but the street in front of the house is.  

There really are no laws regarding direct mailing or door to door soliciting and Realtors use these techniques frequently.  

Where do they get their data from and how frequently is it updated?

I'm wondering, and I apologize for my unfamiliarity with this, but are there closing costs in a subject to deal where you take over an owner's payments on thier mortgage?