Underprice them so you can sell fast.You should be able to do paint, carpet, and re-do the landscaping in no more than a week, if you are a good worker.When prices are going up and the market is strong, it is very difficult to get a good enough price on a cosmetic fixer, so the fix and flip investor is left with properties that need serious work.

I'm strongly leaning toward this method of investment but don't think its a complete system.

I would STRONGLY recommend that you join your local REIA (Real Estate Investors Association) and make friends with the SUCCESSFUL landlords in your area.

Your best bet is to strong arm the sellers about the money that you spent and try to force them to honor your agreement.A good friend of my once told me that if I wanted to be a bankrupcy attorney...make sure that I get paid up front.

@Jonathan Luna AND @Michael Barnhart  Hopefully the OP is still here, but I strongly doubt it.   

More strongly for higher priced properties than where you are.

AND A PROPER PRESENTATION WILL MAKE YOU RICH...I strongly agree.

The problem was the police could not technically do anything as a crime had yet to be committed (I didn't try to cash the check nor did I wire anyone else money), and the principals of the con were more than out of everyone's jurisdiction.What follows are three actual scam letters that are currently circulating on the internet:INITIAL CONTACT LETTER FROM FAKE PHYSICIAN-----Original Message-----From: Dr.

Here in Portland it seems to me that our market is just slightly declining but still strong and really good deals are further out of the city.I search for properties using the listing sites, advertise, and then drive by.Question: How to go about requesting a list of foreclosures directly from the REO Departments of banks?

One of the great features of their site is the ability to VOTE on a Startup to show which ones have a strong interest, and those with a strong interest get even more publicity.I'd like to ask that you please stop by the site and vote for BiggerPockets as a Killer Startup!