Obviously VERY important, because you don’t want a bank coming back to you in a few years and telling you that the account is past due and they are going to foreclose on the house because the loan hasn’t been paid.

Needless to say that anyone that had purchased in the last 5 years has done well as long as they were in areas that moved up with appreciating rents and values.Unfortunately, not all of America had done that.I still have a friend of mine that bought in Bristol, CT that have not seen much value or rent appreciation although it had maintained it's consistency.The problem is that he totally missed the boat on the appreciating areas which was where he lived.Unfortunately, investing in non-appreciating areas but living and not owning in the appreciating area is a formula that spelled disaster for him.

We have obviously have unreasonable neighbor, he copy and paste from the internet he found that said * Regardless of if there is property damage, a land owner may sue he neighbor to make that neighbor trim the branches that encroach the landowner's property. ( we had respond and cut down the trees. so done). * serious harm caused by encroaching tree limbs or tree root may give rise to a lawsuit.

.#5 Make Decisions Based on the NumbersYour real estate investing strategy should include the financial parameters by which you determine if a property is worth purchasing.Your strategy may include details about: Purchase price range.Investment cash needed for repairs and upgrades before leasing to tenants.Financing strategy for the short and long terms.Bargain purchase (the percent under fair market value a property must be purchased).Immediate value increase (the percent in increased value you expect after making initial repairs and upgrades).Geographic area.Net income.Cash flow.Net cap rate (annual net income/total value).When you find a potential investment property that fits within the guidelines of your real estate investment strategy, you can pull the trigger based on the numbers rather than emotions and personal preferences.#6 Don’t Buy from Unmotivated SellersMotivated sellers are usually willing to work with buyers, so focusing on finding motivated sellers can result in making great deals as a real estate investor.

Part 2:Other things that need to be mentioned in contract that seem more obvious (hopefully less debatable):1. 

Obviously the higher the better and it all depends on the specific deal.

Would it be possible for my in-law to sell 500k of the house to my spouse and I, use that 500k to buy herself a new cheaper house to move into, and then we all sell the original house together 2 years later for a total of 1m tax exemption?

Obviously a beginner....trying to find out ways to fund my first flip project.

@Ryan Blake I totally agree with the comment about investing in your local market. 

You could counter will longer terms, lower payments, but keeping your asking price intact (if that solution meets your needs, obviously).