Or, can you spend a little (or a lot) more and find a home that you'll be able to move into sooner and with less stress along the way?

I would strongly recommend spending the money to meet with an attorney for an hour before you put anything in writing to your tenant.Good Luck!

Lots of fakes out there so be careful.And its not so  much they will steal up front money from you.. but you waste time and money finding a place thinking they are going to fund you put up non refundable EM spend money on inspections only to have your deal die because you got with someone who cant fund or never could fund. 

So, if an agent says that, its not something you should be spending your time second guessing.

@Agustin Conti Are you sure you'll be able to sell it and recoup your spend?

My vacation market we are around $800 per night so the clientele is more family oriented and tend to spend most days in national parks or out adventuring.

I don't have anyone else in my household other than us so no idea, but I've never been asked the question either.

If you want to be completely self-sufficient, you're willing to build an Earthbag home or another building that can be earthquake proofed but can still be run without public utilities, you can spend a ton of money on a well and can have that well water processed to remove contaminated mine crap, you have a great off-road vehicle and you can figure out how to deal with the flooding without redirecting that water onto someone else's land then you can definitely live there.If it's an Investment you're after, give that up.

I guess that is why so many people buy lottery tickets, to have a little nicer car to drive to work....I grew up watching my mom carefully invest in stocks that she held for decades and built a nice portfolio with, I could never understand people who would get a bonus and spend it rather then invest it.  

@Eva Sha happy to spend an hour with you over zoom and see what type of guidance or direction I can give you.