Both the setup cost and monthly fees for this soft phone service are very cost efficient.

If you decide to teach about real estate investing, I think the period will be short in which you, Tim, will continue to do it for free.

You may not have to inherit any potential tenants for a significant period of time.

We recently saw a gentleman interviewed on the news talking about predatory loans, & said that 100% of the loans they've evaluated that originated in a certain time period ('02-'06?)

Basically, all the major investment banks have engaged in credit default swaps which allow a buyer or ‘fixed rate’ party to make periodic payments to a ‘floating rate’ party in exchange for the ‘right’ to a payoff if there is a default or credit event in respect to a third party - called the reference entity.

For example, rent on time or early for all periods (weekly or monthly) in the past 12 months; no disturbances; repairs for tenant caused damages paid by tenant; informing landlord of misbehavior by other tenants; and I'm sure you can come up with more.

Control--you get it in REI, you don't in stocks.In REI, you can add value to the investment with your knowledge, work, and creativity.In stocks, those things can help you, but they can't add value to the investment itself.Also, RE is by definition local, and therefore a less efficient market.

(a) (1) "Rent skimming" means using revenue received from the rental of a parcel of residential real property at any time during the first year period after acquiring that property without first applying the revenue or an equivalent amount to the payments due on all mortgages and deeds of trust encumbering that property

That's a great idea as long as you have some sort of minimum holding period.

What if housing prices don't increase in that time period to give you equity for the down payment?