Typically those purchases fall under one of the following categories.1) Purchased through direct mail or some other from of direct contact with seller and never hit the MLS2) Pocket listing where agent never exposed property to MLS3) Short sale (there were a lot more of these a couple years ago)4) Complex title issues, bad tenants, and other impediments that scare off most buyers5) Some sort of shady deal where property hits MLS and goes on hold right away, often somebody is greasing somebody in these situations and #3 above is closely related to this as well.Unless you are lending on properties out here I do not think the market dynamics here are relevant to Illinois and would not suggest making your lending decisions based on transactions that take place here.

There are numerous people on BP flipping in the 150k range because their market has an abundance of outdated/cheap houses, a stable mid-level economy with low crime & low unemployment, and a premium of buyers that want updated homes. 

He has told his property managers numerous times and they say they can't (or won't) fix it because the problem is on the neighbor's property.

I was reading a few sites this morning, regarding VA loans and how they work, especially when it comes to getting a loan for more than 1 property, if you have already used a VA loan to purchase a homeI fall in the Dollar amount ( $36,000 ) / Lender Amount ( $144,000 ) category ,so if I understand It correctly, they will cover $36,000 of that $144,000 , which leaves you with $108,000So could you in theory, purchase within 4 years, 4 homes, using the VA loan each time and living in each of those 4 homes for the 1 year O.O. rule, as Long as each of those 4 houses didn't appraise for more than $144,000 each ( $36,000 x 5 =  $144,000 )I'm trying to make sure, that before I consider going VA vs FHA , that I can purchase, hold for 1 year and then rent out up to 4 properties, as long as each doesn't appraise for more than that $144,000Thank you everyone, I really , really appreciate it

Ask what they see them selling for and what expenses are by category.

Here are a few recommendations for you:Find and connect with other BP members that are in your area http://www.biggerpockets.com/meet Set up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts Read Beginner’s Guide http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing and check out BP Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/ If you wish to tag someone in the conversation on the forum, type @ followed by their name and then select that person below.

That doesn't count the numerous other resources that have come from this site, many of which have been very helpful in our growth of late.  

for a definition of this and to see if you fall in this category check out the first 3 min of the following video.  

Each real life scenario you just named has its own respectable tax filing category.

There are numerous real estate schools and colleges that offer the courses necessary to obtain a license.