It's supposed to ensure there are no surprises after closing.

You will be surprised at how willing people are to help out someone such as yourself just starting out. 

I have a significant amount of cash saved up, but I would prefer to maintain my reserves for all the surprises that come with your first investment.

I made a point to travel out to MO every 3-4 months to do "surprise inspections" and go through make sure everything is still up to my standards. 

Gas Station owners pm me if you don't want to post.What I have found conclusively is that with gasoline you are lucky to break even and then the real income comes from the convenience store purchases.Looking out for contamination is a big thing.Any other ideas for owner/operators.Thanks in advance.

It's surprising to hear that.

To my surprise I saw a massive fluctuation between extreme highs and average lows.

@David Faulkner I wouldn't be surprised if something along those lines you described in the US.Don't forget the government has a monopoly on violence/force.

The majority of my holdings are here and I keep getting tempted by cheaper prices in other markets, but I just don't know if I can beat the safety, stability, and convenience of Billings.

If I would have saved $700 on the last one, and say $500 on the next one, plus the convenience factor, it would certainly pay for itself within ~10 projects.