Start a spreadsheet and do this until you feel confident walking a property and estimating cost on the spot from all of your entries :)

Question about ARV if a much larger house is in a spot around a bunch of smaller houses that are worth around 50k but there are houses in the area less than a mile away around the same size that sold for 120-150k.

@Laura Sulak I have a soft spot for single mothers so my hat goes off to you, that you are able to work full time handle two teens and then have real estate on the side.

Over the life of a property, 50% operating expenses has been pretty spot on in my experience.  

We moved 4 1890 Queen Anne Victorians to the spot for a retail and office location and had a buyer as we were moving the 3rd one.

I accidentally dropped a crowbar from ceiling height, it chipped a tiny spot but you can't even tell because the color goes all the way through the plank.

I didn't think the Central Valley was much of a hot spot but the city is developing quickly and it has a long way to go much like these other cheaper cities.

J is spot on.

Jon's reply is full of wisdom and great advice.His points are spot on about your experience, realistic LTVs that are out there, and associated costs.The number one issue will be the low occupancy, the second will be your lack of experience, and the third may be the cash to close this deal.You could be looking at hundreds of thousands to close this deal.

Im in a hard spot since the market is hard to rent the place if they leave.They also want me to pay for a fire extinguisher.