Business must be good down there as i've reached out to about ten different firms and have had virtually no returned phone calls.

There are threads on theFastlaneForum.com with specifics of all of my deals, but here is a quick highlight of the current state of my apartment deal (I will be starting another thread because I have a question on how others might address the basement renovation financing situation with the property): Purchase: $210,000 (REO); 2-units rehabbed and updated by the bank, garden unit not yet finished but the framing is completeDown 3.5%: $5,000 Earnest, $900 at closing (seller covered $7,500 in closing costs, also used to buy the FHA rate down to 3.25%)Capex: ~$8,000 (Updated door hardware, amp service from 100 to 200, coin-op laundry machines, etc)Location: 1 block from Brown Line in Chicago (great) on the North SideComps: Property across the street, similar layout sold for $300,000 in March (had slightly nicer finishes, unfinished garden unit)Rent Roll: Unit 2 - $1,300 with parking (3 bed, 1 bath...currently under market since rented November 1st) Unit 1 - $1,100 (live in 2 bed, rent one room at $550 and currently use one parking space worth $150/mo, renting out beginning next month) Garden - $950 (2 bed, proforma for rehab; will cost $15,000-20,000 to rehab) Laundry - $30/moNOI @ 45% (brand new water heaters, furnaces, appliances, etc): $17,030PF Basement Reno NOI @ 45%: $23,430As-Is Cap: 7.8% (yuck!)

Ahhh, those were the days...Now just getting someone to talk to you (let alone someone who knows what they are doing) is virtually impossible.I think you might get some traction with this strategy at a small local bank, but the successes will be few and far between because few of the defaulted loans are with such banks.

I don't have my numbers in front of me; But it was around $500 including renting a trench machine.

Hey guys,I just went through Chris Chico's Virtual Wholesaling Program and he recommends using a 800 # with an extension on his direct mail campaign for sellers to call and leave a message.

He's probably too busy hiring people who hire other people who hire other people to buy counting machines to count his billions of dollars.

Originally posted by George Paiva:Did you know that:Landlords can greatly increase the depreciation deductions they receive the first few years they own rental property by using segmented depreciation.Careful planning can permit you to deduct, in a single year, the cost of improvements to rental property that you would otherwise have to deduct over 27.5 years.You can rent out a vacation home tax-free, in some cases.Most small landlords can deduct up to $25,000 in rental property losses each year.A special tax rule permits some landlords to deduct 100% of their rental property losses every year, no matter how much.People who rent property to their family or friends can lose virtually all of their tax deductions.If you didn't know one or more of these facts, you could be paying far more tax than you need to.

Then you wonder with that kind of down payment, maybe it makes more sense to invest in real estate elswhere...Coming from a pure cash-flow investing environment like Japan, with very little to no capital growth (which is fine with me, I prefer high and reliable income), I still struggle to wrap my head around the fact that so many people will bet so much money on virtually unknown speculation moves with little to nil income until realisation can occur (if at all) 3, 7, 10 or 15 years down the track (or not) - particularly after the last few years of financial roller coaster...can anyone explain this rationale to me?

Imagine this was before digital cameras when you looked up property recording information with a microfiche machine.

I'm enjoying every second of this experience and look forward to a well oil SUPER EFFICIENT machine soon.Thanks again for all the suggestions!