If they weren't that successful then are they the best people to be dishing out paid advice?

If the house is funky, it will be funky after you fix it up..

As far as home office no longer being an IRS "red flag" I guaranty that if you put a home office deduction on a personal return on Turbo Tax it will move their audit risk needle.

I haven't done my first deal yet, but I hope that in 2024 I will be able to replace my W2. 

The average repair will be $600 or less, MAYBE $1,000.

You just hold it, keep it occupied and well maintained, and let the years roll by. 

Quote from @Donyea Jenkins: State and market specific to be honest, some areas have a lot more REOs than others.

Ideally, I’d like to become so much of value that I’d be paid for my help/ services.

They work well for the houses we work in 100-500k.

An additional benefit of a detailed engineering-based Cost Segregation Study is that it can increase potential insurance premium savings as well as provide support for the property tax appeals process.