We put treats and a card in the fridge.

We rarely bother with that any more because: people with stable employment, good credit without late payments, not run up every card they own, no criminal record, no evictions, and present themselves as nice, decent people are generally not psychopaths once they get into their unit.

Missing a good deal is way better than getting a good deal and then all your cards crumble from a couple vacancies and a lack of reserves.

Just as anyone can learn to code (as I did in high school in the 1960s writing Fortran II programs on punch cards for an IBM model 1401 computer), anyone can learn how to buy the house next door and fill it with tenants who pay for it for you with their rent payments over the next 30 years.

Key Bank, FLorida flexible lender, HELOCs on second homes and rental properties. 90% LTV on primary.PenFed - max 3 other propertie, 89% LTV Regions- yes HELOC but no loc SCCU Florida 70% LTV, 6.25% interest only, not LLC TD BankTIAA Direct was EverBankTower FCU, all states except TX, max 45 DTI, green card ok.

Eventually I gave up and put together a bunch of creative financing and bought the second duplex last November for $33k and put $25k reno on a credit card.

My believe:  Your 22 houses totaling 33 units is your calling card.

CPA's report card really only comes once a year.

I’d happily pay $4800 and purchase my first property in a few weeks to months rather than a few years, and do it without making rookie mistakes that also cost me money… that makes it’s worth it.

Expanding beyond that, some of the other ways I have come across are:- Delayed financing through limited lenders- Tapping into Whole Life insurance cash values- Home loans through credit card companies like Discover Home Loans- 401k loan- Margin loans on stock investmentsWhich of these would you leverage and are their ones you would strongly avoid?