Overall I LOVE Columbus, we're the 3rd strongest market in the NATION , the north part of my county which is closest to Columbus had a GREAT 2007 with little if no slowdown.

I have credit partners who will purchase the property and then put it in a land trust and the buyers will have 2-5 years to improve credit and get conventional financing.

According to a report by CNN, the 5 most expensive housing markets in the USA in 2007 along with average home prices were Beverly Hills, CA $2,206,883, Greenwich, CT $2,018,750, La Jolla, CA $1,800,000, Santa Monica, CA, $1,785,000, and Palo Alto, CA $1,687,000 .The 5 least expensive housing markets in the USA in 2007 along with average home prices were Killeen, TX $136,725, Minot, ND $139,033, Arlington, TX $139,175, Canton, OH $146,333, and Muncie, IN $150,000.According to the National Association of Realtors, the 5 cities with the biggest drop in home prices in 2007 were Palm Bay, FL $182,400 (median price) 12.4% (price drop), Sacramento, CA $335,700 (median price)10.5% (price drop), Sarasota, FL $287,400 (median price) 10.4% (price drop), New Orleans, LA $160,200 (median price) 8.2% (price drop), and Hagerstown, MD $208,400 (median price) 8.0% (price drop).The 5 fastest appreciating housing markets were Bismarck, ND $161,600 (median price) 15.3% increase, Salt Lake City, UT $246,700 (median price) 14.1% increase, Yakima, WA $163,200 (median price) 13.6% increase, Binghamton, NY $119,600 (median price) 11.4% increase, and Charlotte, NC $220,100 (median price) 11.0% increase.

Then ask if she trusts your decission making ability.

Mike-OH will be able to comment on reducing the visible profile (LLCs/trusts and otherwise).As someone else noted using liability insurance has to be part of a good solution.

Get ahold of Lane Guide http://www.laneguide.com, they have all lenders nationally which lend or service in Florida (or any state).

Based on what I've heard from various trusted sources, many feel that there is still substantial downward price movement to come in this market.

This actually happened to one of the guys in my investor network, but he was intuitive enough to not trust it and actually informed the authorities about it.

Or, if you have a trusted contractor who would work with you for less, you might consider that.

National lenders tend to handle higher volume which means increased knowledge.