Hi Everyone, I've been educating myself and scouting out Duplex opportunities for my first house hack.

I have been doing a bit of scouting in my target neighborhoods and keeping an eye out for vacants / run down houses.

What you can't do it scout deals for another person who gives you a real estate commission (with your name never being on the actual deal).

@Michael PicherYes, in Maine, I have primarily been scouting from the Portland suburbs down to Kittery.  

I have money to invest but I don't want to spend my time doing things like scouting for deals, managing tenants, or rehabbing properties.

Personally, I am keeping an eye on listings and scouting around to find anything good off market, but I do not actually think I will make a purchase until at least mid-2021 or if at least a few of the many uncertain variables in the market are somehow magically gone. 

Hello all, I am scouting locations in the Los Angeles area to purchase my first vacation property with the intent to list it as a Short Term Rental (STR).

Instead, I would focus on a property that cash flows at least $200/month.What I should have done instead: Looked at Neighborhood Scout and conducted further research on finding a better submarket to invest in.Source: https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/mo/kansas-city/real-estateLocation, location, location.

@Marcus GalanYou can work with a traditional agent for MLS deals, you can work with a wholesaler or one of the bigger wholesale companies for off market leads, and you can also do some of your own deal scouting on FSBO websites, however that is extremely competitive.

From that, I begin due diligence - reviewing the tax records, title records and a drive by and site "scouting" visit to see if it meets additional criteria.