I am also a consistently prepared applicant with the city of Seattle (DPD), as well as other jurisdictions - meaning that I consistently submit "code-compliant" drawings that isn't a waste of their time, therefore gets through the process quicker.No, this wasn't meant to be a marketing post.My point, is that architects (like me) bring a lot to the table, and are a valuable asset to have on your team. 

Put some skin in the game, and see if the family on the other side of the table is appeased.  

If the seller isn't in a position to bring cash to the table, the buyer is the only option.

You can get a feel for what kinds of business activities are going on in the county, and you can find out when meetings are held and even attend a few of those to meet the local players.Some counties also have "Economic Development" websites that could tell you of the latest plans for developments, and maybe even the latest incentives for bringing new business into the area.For example: if I'm looking at investing in Fairfax, VA I would run the following google searches:fairfax county vafairfax county real estate tax assessmentsfairfax county chamber of commercefairfax county economic developmentOn top of that you can look at some other online resources like:http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045214/0...http://www.city-data.com/http://2chambers.com/http://www.numbeo.com/Another good thing to look up is the real estate law for your state (another thing I found by googling).

However properties here will not cash flow because of the very reason that property values are so high and everyone sells their properties for the maximum value they can get leaving nothing on the table for any new buyer and especially a real estate investor. 

The HOA won't allow weekly rentals or Air BnB style stuff which is a shame because I could rent the heck out of it for the summer and winter (it's near both lakes, mountains, Tanglewood, and a ski resort).

Something has to pay the bills, put food on the table and yes, cover health costs.Building your wealth by doing RE might take longer than expected.Here is a quick example:A mid-level SW engineer in the DFW area makes about 100K / year plus bonus (about 10%) plus 401K matching plus benefits (health, dental, vision) plus paid vacation days. if you sum it all up, about 140K total comp. 

Problem is you will need to bring something of substance to the table, and if you are new to RE that may be a catch-22 for you.Read as many forum threads here on BP as you can about Iinvesting with low money down, you will be on information overload but that is OK because eventually your brain will filter and retain the important stuff.Much success!

Concerning mobile home investing there are four main areas where people mess up, these areas are; overpaying for the home, over improving the home, fill in the home with a high-risk tenant-buyer, and leaving thousands of dollars on the closing table when reselling.

I once had a seller demand that I pay 4k they owed in back taxes or they wouldn't sign (this was at the closing table). 4 GRAND.