Both have been mentioned numerous times by guests on the Bigger Pockets podcast and I have detailed notes to both books.

You can put any amount down to make it easier to justify house hacking or maybe it is an investment and you pay more and gamble on price appreciation.  

Both have been mentioned numerous times by guests on the Bigger Pockets podcast and I have detailed notes to both books.

We have numerously spoken about the idea of partnering up for a duplex to house-hack.

I am no expert on Tax certificates either, however, I know that some are a gamble that the owner will never redeem and the investor will get the house (for $2500 in this case).DD is crucial! 

Once someone at the bank realizes they have lost the property they might go after the surplus without realizing their own negligence was the reason the property was lost in the first case.We have taken numerous properties from banks that were asleep at the wheel.

I  live in Detroit and am hoping to find my niche among the numerous opportunities I see here.

Think:  tell all of the people you meet that you are an investor; we constantly ask our numerous tenants to think of us if they hear that a friend or family member is having trouble. 

In the case of real estate, it can be both an equity investment (purchasing an interest) in properties owned) or debt (sharing in a loan), and there are numerous ways that these types of investments can be structured.  

You should check out the Reading Berks Real Estate Investment Club....numerous educators and good group to network with.