Purchase the property and complete the rehab and then refinance the new property to pay off rehab costs.  

Here's the numbers:Single family house in NE San Antonio. 1,456 square feet, 3 bed 2.5 bathPurchase price: $105,000Rehab; $20,000Hard money loan: $112,500Cash out of pocket (From HUD stmt):$12,500 (down payment)$2,250 (points)$385 (lender fees)$892.50 (title fees)$1,320 (insurance)-$2,001.34 (credit for unpaid taxes)Total: $15,346.16Actual rehab cost: $19,678.12Hold time until rehab and refinance complete: 98 daysInterest expense: $3,020.55Refinance loan terms: 30 year adjustable rate mortgage at 5.75% interest fixed for 5 years at 85% LTV and 1 point.Appraised value: $164,500Cash-out refi amount: $139,825Cash back in my pocket after lender fees, title fees, down payment, interest expense, insurance, etc are all accounted for: $5,389.50Now the place is rented for $1,200 a month and I figure I'll pocket about $200-$300 a month after expenses and mortgage payments and in the end, no money tied up in the deal!

Good morning everyone,I am looking to jump into real estate investing primarily with rental properties.

Sorry, I should have been more specific; I buy a lot of my own materials but on jobs that I am completely subbing out I want materials+labor on the bid.

Would like to grow a healthy cash-flow portfolio in the next 5 years to supplement (or completely replace) retirement.

This can allow depreciation to be taken where there is otherwise taxation and the tax-deferred (or tax free) status of the retirement account can completely shelter the loan income.Some people oversimplify this to mean "don't buy real estate in an IRA" which is just misguided, in my opinion.It's really all about maximizing the performance you can get which each available financial bucket you have.

@heater R I am seeing that issue definitely I've been looking and keeping an eye on duplexes and I've seen a few that seem like they would be a good buy However I'm still very new to this and not fully confident nor completely understand how to properly evaluate a property yet.

Hey y'all, I'm a first time poster, a complete newbie, and in need of some advice.I have my eyes set on a 4plex in Florida, and boy is it in rough shape. 

First the bad, most banks will not fund the loan nor will most home owner insurance companies approve a policy until restoration and remediation is complete.

I am looking for something for myself to buy rehab completely and then refinance and live in one unit and rent the others but I am waiting for the opportunity where I can buy 30-50 cents on the dollar, so I am in no rush right now.