I can see the advantages of being able to get a down payment to reinvest in a small MFR and I will be able to capitalize on my lower interest for some positive cash flow.All of the disadvantages I can think of involve some upfront investment for legal advice and work, time for further education and that's about it.Any feedback will be greatly appreciated.Thanks all!

I know we want to try to wait to show the property until fixes are done and it looks the best it can, but how much lead time before that? 

As an investor if you have a full-time maintenance person you could double them as an inspector for when you buy properties, that's what I do.

If you do find a deal and maybe it doesn’t cash flow for the first year or 2 but you can make improvements, raise rents on under market leases, manage property effectively and cover your expenses at least you will have started and can look for better cashflow over time.

This negative equity position will consume the initial cash flow. 

Too many entrepreneurs make good money each year but pay Uncle Sam 35-50% of it.It takes a long time to build a massive wealth snowball when 1/3 to 1/2 of your snow gets chopped off each year.Real estate can help with this.

Use this rating and classification system I have created over time to get an idea of the "Class" for the area - A class B class & so onHere is my rating & classification for each livability score.80 and above A+78/79 A76/77 A-74/75 B+72/73 B70/71 B-68/69 C+66/67 C64/65 C-60/63 D59 and below FCheers from Fort Worth, TX

and if you can't invest the time and effort to do that... how can you spend thousands or tens of thousands of dollars on a property you haven't seen yourself?

@Matt Rodak runs the site and I have met him a few times and had a number of discussions with him (more from the investor side not from the flipper side).

Leveraging an owner occupied loan locally most of the time will take far less cash.