@Garret Dorsey,My first DM campaign is going to out-of-state absentee owners. 

They separate the "really bad screens" from the "less bad screens" and make money doing it.And the really bad screens also are housed elsewhere between jail sentences--some call them War Zones or F areas, (and there are people in here that make money housing them in those areas also).So it's probably not a housing issue in the areas we see this happening, as much as it's the local government not wanting a particular segment of their population to move away to (Suitable Housing) in another area--where they will lose Federal Financial Income for themselves and those who "Contribute to their campaigns" (and give them other perks in life to do their bidding).Areas like this typically have homeless populations (who actually need housing), but the local governments seem to do very little to house these people in a decent respectable manner, instead choosing to keep their own pockets (and those of certain of their contributors (and benefactors) lined with Federal Government cash for so-called servicing these people with tax payer provided services and etc...Just my 2 cents...Good Luck!

I was told by 3 different banks (Wells Fargo/Guaranteedrate/Commerce home mortgage) that with a duplex you can do FHA 3.5% down, but you need to add mortgage insurance to that and a few other restrictions.

Also, with it rented, we shouldn't be restricted from getting a new loan by the bank still considering our current address as a primary residence.But, great call on the tax implications, due on sale and considerations to sell and re-invest.In order to sell, we'd really want to make sure we have enough equity to at least sell and not owe.Thanks,Emilio 

I don't believe CC&Rs can legally restrict the number of rental properties in a given community but they can dictate the minimum duration of the lease. 

So now you're 20% return is more like 15%. not counting the increased restrictions by many municipalities, Market saturation by everyone jumping into the short term rental pool,  angst about reviews, unhappy neighbors, etc etc. what if there was a better way?

Or even restrict it to affordable housing limits I don't care. 

@John Ballard  Talk to your loan officer about buying two homes vs one. i don't know if there are restrictions on the VA loan. 

I pay people to put out signs for me, help with mailing campaigns (envelopes, stamps and labels), create mailing lists for me doing research on public records ect.

I'm just looking to buy real estate for rental or flip purposes.Dodd-Frank creates certain restrictions on the ability to sell real estate using seller financing (which don't apply because in this scenario because non-consumer purchases are exempt), but how does it impact someone's ability to market themselves as a real estate buyer who makes their purchases using custom tailored seller financed offers?