I must admit that I did the vast majority of the work and did not utilize the consultant very much on my first project, but it was a confidence-builder knowing I had that "safety net" in the event I started to feel lost or overwhelmed.I haven't seen you mention what kind of REI you're looking to get into. 

The new tenant would have to pay two months of rent just to make up what you lost in the one month on an unoccupied condo's expenses.

One without the other is a futile venture, ending in frustration and money lost.

Wow have I been there, in the past I have lost track of my goals.  

All said and done, the tenant buyers weren't real, the only one he lined up never paid, he vanished, and the houses sat at the PEAK of the market in 2005, and the value dropped... and dropped... and eventually, I lost all my money and couldn't afford the $17K per month in mortgage payments these 5 deals were costing me.My cell phone was ringing literally every 48 seconds with another automated collections call from the mortgage company (who I had 10 loans with!).

I had a friend who recently lost out on a business opportunity because he had no assets to leverage and secure with a mortgage, even though the business venture is sound and profitable from day one...and he was putting 20% into the business himself and getting 10% carried by the seller.

I'm not saying it can't happen, but I've never lost a deal because of it.Just my .02Originally posted by Brian Stone:I searched, didn't find anything on here about this, but I keep reading everywhere that *I* need to put an earnest money deposit on a house I will be wholesaling.

He would have lost money on his first deal.

My wife and I played around with some ideas but prices were so crazy in 2005-2007 that we held off and I lost focus on Real Estate and concentrated on my career.

That kills your bottom line and eats away lost rent and repairs to a property.