Its painful but part of the game.Moral: I've been able to invest outside my area in properties that cashflow just as well for a fraction of the purchase price.

I feel your pain but don't let off the gas.

Oh and consider dropping out of grad school...I have a PhD in Cognitive Sci and I don't think it is worth the pain!!

Turns out i could have rolled it over into a Self-Directed SoloK and used the funds to invest without penalty. ....growing and learning pains.

I'm disappointed in Dwolla closing down because it was a bit of a pain to get all my tenants on that system.

That's a game changer for me since I work with a lot of out-of-state buyers and sending a mobile notary and waiting for the originals docs can be a pain.

In order to help with the house payment, they took money from their 401k to supplement.When the market took a sharp decline in 2008, Mom and Dad lost all the 401k money they had put into that house.Their retirement savings took a big hit, but they courageously started over.

I own 3 4plexes on south city which have been a major pain trying to stablize.  

We'll keep doing them if we can make them work.I suspect the deals under $75k are so profitable because they are such a pain to get financed... once you get in the deal access to the equity seems limited.So it's a problem I didn't expect, great credit and a good job, real estate exp.

Having no money "if something goes wrong" could put a quick and painful end to your investment career before it even really gets going.Option 2 sounds much safer there's some "free" money involved.If I've learned anything in this business is not to get too distraught by missing out on a property.