I am being represented by a traditional realtor who has little experience with short sales.

I haven't read the book, but I have mixed feelings about socialized medicine.

As the church is the borrower, there is no need for personal income/tax/credit verification---lending decisions are made in most part by the church's cash flow using one of the two following approaches:- Traditional DSCR approach (common amongst commercial lenders)- Multiple Income approach (giving value to collections, donations and using a multiple ranging from 2 to 4 times the Church's total income as a basis to determine max. loan amount).

Interest paid would be treated just as if buyer were using traditional financing. 

What kind of marketing is done in the area, traditional may not work in that market. 

However you traditionally find more sophisticated and experienced players in commercial...that isn't always the case however more so than single family investing.

Because of the ease, speed, and the flexibility of private money loans over traditional bank-type loans, many investors prefer them when acquiring real estate.

Another bookend gap is between Pasadena and Downtown, also filling in nicely over the past 15+years.I'd next watch for a fill in between the Southbay and traditional Westside neighborhoods.

And I hate to say it, but it typically isn't one of the traditional liberal arts (history, english, law, political science, art)I have a very good friend who is passionate about history - do you know how many jobs are available?  

You can accidentally become an investor by keeping your primary and moving but that's slightly different then traditional investment models.