,"it's like finding a bird's nest on the ground".

Just wondering how interested people would be to have a website that they could go to that they could do a back ground type check on potential renters to see if they have had any bad experiences with other landlords and to be able to see the type of damage they inflicted on the landlords property to help them in not having the same thing happen to them.

My first one the kitchen had nothing in it - it was gutted - and the floor had a hole right through to the ground.

Getting a ground floor opportunity to watch how he handles his investments.

This is one of the pitfalls of purchasing from a builder in a newly constructed community...They don't care about maintaining property values in the community (because they usually don't live in the communities they build); they care about getting property of the books so they can refund another construction phase.

New rental developments commonly have things like:[list]Nearby shopping or multi-use buildings w/retail on ground floor and lofts above.Nearby parking and extra storage available.Wireless Internet.Upgraded [fill in the blank]Ready access to public transportation or vouchers/subsidiesLaundry in-unit[/list:u]I have no idea what the market is like in your area and it does seem tough right now all around, but it might be worth looking at what you have (or have not) done with your rentals and see if you are still offering something competitive.With the explosive growth in RE investments, many by newbies who spent far too much money upgrading rentals, there are both more rentals on the market and they're in better average condition than before.

Worst case, you buy one that's ground floor with a patio instead of a balcony, but if it's basement, stay away.

As our business has grown my wife finally let me know that sleeping on the ground was not going to be a part of her future.

If you're claiming the money's coming out of your own pocket, but the lender's slipping it to you under the table then I think you're on shaky ground.

Now if I wanted to try for this building (apt buildings are supposed to be a later phase of this plan), I would write to her offering to assume the loan if she would carry a second.