@Florencio NayveIt depends on exactly what you’re looking to do. 

I am hoping for cash flow, equity, appreciation and tax benefits.

Mainly because I can craft the mortgage a little more (no pre-payment penalties, lower down payment, etc.) and eliminate the fees charged by lenders and brokers.One of the benefits of purchasing a listed property is that the broker will normally set the seller's expectations a bit more than you just contacting them off the street.It comes down to what the seller really wants: a certain price, interest, down payment, or term.

@Jeremy Staggers It depends on the deal.

That will depend on your risk tolerance. 

Depends on your commitment and ability to get great returns (and add skillsets to win).

I'm already pre-approved and looking for opportunities, which is where I'm kind of stuck as I don't have the contacts in the state.

Everyone seems to talk about including the costs of the new mortgage, taxes, insurance, maintenance & capital reserves, and the vacancy projections when looking at realistic cashflow, which we already do for all the properties in our rental portfolio.But we, like many, cant find properties that are making any cashflow sense right now.

We're thinking we'll need a buyer's agent, a lawyer in Tampa, and a inspector to do pre-inspections before we ever decide to put in an offer.

You can also import lists if you've gotten one from a gov office, like probates or tax liens.