If the seller says it needs about 50 that may cut it to get it rental ready but to hit comps close to or in the 4s I would imagine it needs much more, you need to factor in the basement (does it need dug or finished), do you need central AC added, Id imagine comps in the 4s have both of these things, also have a contractor check out the mechanics and overall structure, it can be hard for even a seasoned investor to come up with the right rental estimate. 

@Keith Bloemendaal We are builders, and I could not imagine buying a house already built if there were lots available for sale.

If this is the case, the structure needs to be temporarily supported, the primary supports removed, the failing concrete excavated and a proper footing poured to support the load.

You imagine a situation where conditions change and suddenly you are stuck having to 1) lay thousands out a month to cover mortgages, or 2) have to sell at a loss and owe the bank lots of money, or 3) face foreclosures.I agree that drastic situations like that could probably be foreseen and prevented to some degree, but the thought of potentially facing multiple foreclosures is a scary one.

I'm not sure about larger animals but odd imagine it's much longer. 

I imagine that makes sense.

Either way, having read Jeff Brown's stuff on this and run my own numbers, I cannot imagine a scenario where it makes sense to simply leave your money in a 401k for the next 20 years.

Mostly I see this preservation activity being out-sourced to contractors rather than being done by in-house employees; but I would imagine that in areas that have an abundance of foreclosures that the banks can keep a crew of employees busy doing this stuff.Now, sometimes it can take time to record the new deed after the foreclosure completes, but the lender as the new owner will get the preservation actions started ASAP - so a deed might look like still owned by a borrower but the bank has it as REO, and so this is another possibility in addition to what Brian Burke has already pointed out.

My lawyer gets me for $900 alone for just the paperwork and title search.More power to you if that is accurate, but I would imagine it will cost you at least $1800 between the bank's fees and the lawyer's fees.You'll also need 1 year of insurance and 1 year of taxes up front.

I've built a few fences before and durability wise I've always used screws instead of nails,used treated 4x4, and 2x4, make sure 2 bys are standing up and overlapping 4 bys make sure to tell contractor too premix cement before pouring in hole ive seen guys put water in hole then pour dry concrete and procede to try to mix it normaly I go about 2 feet deep hole and they last pretty good did 300 feet 2 years ago still looking good