There's a lot to be said about this, given that I invest in San Francisco, gentrification capital of America right now ;)  but I'll try to be succinct:1- the 2% or even 1% "rule" A- doesn't work in costal CA and B- is a bad way to invest IMO.

All kinds of stories of people "negotiating" with people in their 90's or someone who just lost a parent leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I should note, I don't think all out-of-state investing is bad, it just needs to be done very, very carefully.

So much demand is driven off of school quality! 

On a similar note, lower-income people aren't necessarily that bad to deal with.

The bad news is, finding deals can be very tedious, so don't get discouraged.

Indiana real estate market Indiana rental market Finding a RE attorney Finding a property management company that works for youStructuring deals Future markets we are looking at Growing a Facebook page with a flip company Creating content for social media Branding your company on 14 different social media sites MLS acquisitions Growing a quality buyers list Finding private lenders Hard money lending Managing contractors Material ordering Joint venture agreements Real Estate Photography Shooting video Building your website Finding your niche I am in no way an expert I just have tried to document our journey and sharing what has worked and what has not worked we have made money but also have lost money.

The answers may give you more questions.I can't answer your question about whether gravel in the basement is bad or not.

Is it a bad idea to do this without a realtor?

Experiences good and bad welcome.