My favorite "improvement" is a fresh coat of paint and clean.  

Actually any RE investment has a certain amount of risk.. its how you mitigate that risk that is important.I know from my personal perspective I wanted to deal direct with the source..

For the Houston area this is a great way to get an initial perspective of comps. 

Setting extremely high goals keeps me enthused, engaged and obsessed about achieving goals.You should be able to achieve your goal much sooner.The first step is to learn how to analyze the investment strictly from a financial perspective.  

The areas of York and Lancaster are also great.Central PA is a nice stable market, with great diversity of employment, a few hours drive from NYC, Philly, and DC.You have to be a little bit careful in down town Harrisburg, but the suburbs and whole capital market is great from a cash flow and growth perspective.

So I talk to a landlord on the phone to go see the property, it's a great location, I will act like a perspective renter.As I walk through the rental, I will ask all the questions a regular renter will ask, like, can you tell me the HVAC how old it is, what's the average bills in the summer, what's the average bills in the winter, I really am looking for a long-term commitment, like 24 months, etcAnd then I'll have a flyer in my handAnd I would say,"Mr.

NONE, doesn't know what NOI is and operates strictly from a GROSS RENTS perspective.  

I'm moving to Houston in March when I touch ground I'm looking for buyer's and a fresh start.  

However the best bet from a scalability perspective is being well networked with brokers, property managers & investors in the area.  

Just trying to get a feel for the marketplace from the perspective of deals currently in the works.