Thanks JayIt's pretty tough pickings in the regular real estate market here.

Invest using dollar cost averaging, which means put a steady amount in on a regular basis.

We pay a monthly fee (about $300) to the condo association for upkeep of all the common grounds, roof repairs, maintenance of the parking lot (was recently resurfaced), pressure cleaning of the outside.

And if you present a great team, clean underwriting and a clear business plan you will be amazed at how much these banks will be willing to negotiate to get your business. 

The seller *may* be able to file bankruptcy, stop the foreclosure, clean out a lot of debt and still sell the house to you.

If they don't have the cabinets you're looking for in stock they can do a semi custom cabinet that you can order for just a little more money then their regular price stuff.

@Calvin Lipscomb what you should expect to see is a nice, clean PDF breakdown of material and labor costs for the job, broken down into phases and rooms.

My husband and I are wanting to get a multi-family and are thinking a great way to get my brother involved is the following: My brother would get an FHA loan for a triplex or 4-plex in FloridaI would put the 3.5% down payment as a co-borrowerMy brother and his fiancé would live in one of the units for a few years rent free so they can save money for a houseMy brother would manage the property by showing units, cleaning them when someone moves out, and as much maintenance as he can handle on his ownI would handle the finances paying the mortgage using the cash flow and keep the profits since my brother is living rent freeMy brother would move out eventually (2 or 3 years later) and we would refinance into a regular mortgage so that he can get another FHA loanWe would begin splitting all profits 50/50 once he moves outMy question is, has anyone reading this done this before?

@Mindi Rosser I was thinking of helping investors cleaning up properties, agents with paperwork etcs.

Besides the rent and the costs normally associated with move out (cleaning, paint, etc.) the tenants are also responsible for marketing costs (which are basically zero as I do all the work myself and do not pay to advertise) and commissions that have already been paid, but these again are usually very minimal fees that are not really making any of my tenants think twice about leaving early.