With boarder income, there are fewer loan programs that will count that income. 

Consume every piece of information on real estate and investing you can find. 

If you just want to be a boring "builder basic" flipper, use the same fixtures and finishes for years and years but if you want to set your flips apart and help them sell faster, you have to mix things up a bit and picking those finishes is TIME-CONSUMING! 

a conventional, residential loan is the best way to go to win a deal as sellers prefer them, they come with fewer stipulations for the seller.  

(From the release of updates to Virginia Consumer Protection Laws)Real Estate “Unlawful practice: Makes the unlawful and unlicensed practice of contracting, real estate brokering, or real estate sales, in connection with a consumer transaction, unlawful under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.”

https://rappnews.com/2019/06/30/now-its-the-law-in-virginia/Unlawful practice: Makes the unlawful and unlicensed practice of contracting, real estate brokering, or real estate sales, in connection with a consumer transaction, unlawful under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.

I'll stick to commenting on self-management - in my view, the most time-consuming part is making sure the cabin is set up/you are familiar with it so you can speak knowledgeably about it to guests.  

I haven't had cards or consumer debt of any kind (just mortgages) in years and my score is very high. 

Hey @Eric Brenneman - While it doesn't scare me, it definitely consumes me in the beginning.Part of what I do for my own clients is help them analyze other markets to invest in that might be more appropriate for their goals and risk levels. 

However, my ultimate goal is to build a portfolio of rental properties (buy and hold) for building generational wealth so that in 10 years, I can sit back and watch my legacy grow.Background/Real Estate Journey:My employment history includes working at Fannie Mae (the secondary mortgage market giant) for nearly 20 years (1987- 2006) as an administrative assistant, a call center representative in the Consumer Resource Center, and lastly as the technology manager in the call center.