Ricky Mahone you may want to call my colleague Buddy Corbin northmetroreia.com he knows everyone in his AssociationHe can connect you with either someone who's where you'd like to be or someone who's skills would compliment your own.Good Luck Investing, Mike

That doesn't mean I know everything because working for a home builder is more scheduling than anything else but I do know my way around a home so I want to use those skills however I can.Here's my somewhat unique situation.

I was very impressed with the amount of skill and knowledge many of the members have.

Knowing how to read people is a very valuable skill which is mostly learned on the job.

1100 isn't 1500, but this year sounds better, at this rent level, not sure what just 2 months bank statements would show, other than deposits....but okay....see what you get and then decide.

I needed action: the adrenaline of lots of small sales every day, so I didn't stick with it.In the current economy and with my age and skill set, I don't see a lot of opportunity for a guy like me, so by process of elimination I find myself again attracted to the prospects of real estate.

YOU make yourself successful by constantly learning and pushing yourself to a level that few attain.That makes you valuable to clients as many want the best in their respective field.The KEY question is do you have a full or part time job doing this on the side or is this you have to make closings or you will quit in 60 days because you can't pay the bills to survive??

Asking price: 39,500Estimate Value: 70-75kRent: 1000MTG Payment ~ 400 with tax & insuranceI've noticed in the "Fly-by level" guide for newbies it recommends taking 50% of the rent for expenses then deducting your payments to make sure you have a positive cash flow.

In the heartland, rent yields are so high on the types of properties that Matt describes that you can easily structure the buyer's LC payment to be quite a bit less than the rent would be, even with a sales price that is 50-100% more than you just recently spent to acquire the property, with a rate of 9-10%, and with a fully amortizing 10-15 year note.Most folks that do this that I'm aware of do little or no work to the property beyond very basic habitability standard, they are sold as moderate fixer-uppers to folks that have the skills or connections to make the necessary repairs and updates.

First, I have no idea what prices in your area look like, what types of contractors you plan to use, how much of the work you plan to do yourself, what level of finishes you'd use, etc...so my comments below are purely speculation and generalization