The amount of premium you pay over rents, whether you pay an upfront "option" fee and how much it is, whether you pay a lump sum deposit upon exercising the option...totally between you and the seller.It might be easiest to estimate a purchase price -- try to agree on a timeline and whether the market will go up, down, or stay the same in your area over that time.

Maybe if Bill Gates, Ted Turner and Warren Buffet were funding the project it would power through and be a success.I completely agree that it would be an amazing tool that would totally change how real estate is bought and sold, but the logistics and legalities would be unbelievable.

.- Fixup the house (total of $10K in work) and sell it for $150K (no Realtor fees on this one) only 3 months later- Lender will get their $100K back and you get the remaining $50K.After you pay yourself back for the $20K you put into the deal and the $10K for fixups, your profit is $20K.Does that clear it up?

I read your response and realized that I hadn't done any of the calculations myself and I was totally going off of someone else's calculations.

I especially liked the $900k duplexes that rent out for a total of $3600/mo.

Hi everyone, I am totally new to the REO scene and looking to gain as much knowledge as possible.

The problems that I dealt with during my first year as a landlord:Water pipe burst / total rehab of 1 unitPay-as-you-go general contractor that didn't finish the work on the unitMold / complaint filed with Health DepartmentCrack in foundation that let water come into 1 unit every time it rainedGot locked in to a below-market-rent section 8 rentalMarketing for vacant unitsTenant disputesSection 8 dispute (although in this case it earned me $1900 :mrgreen: )Fortunately I haven't had to deal with evictions yet, but I know they'll come in due time.

I'm psyched to have found this site, because it's just packed with awesome people and information.

Can I get in trouble for disputing if I'm not totally sure?

My money is currently held up in another real estate transaction that has gone totally wrong due to negligence on the mortgage side (don't ever use Meridian Mortgage).