The downside is that the returns are a bit lower but overall I think it's a great first property.

I can help you land properties at much lower rates than you could on your own based on a couple of methods and tools that I use to mine for deals.

The entry level market is very reasonable and taxes are low there.

However, 1. my calculated annual expense is lower than the listing agent's estimation.

When I told him my much lower assessment of the property's value, he offered to find me a lender who would finance based on the wildly inflated sales price.

If this one is lower than the other comps and you could fix it up to be comparable to the other comps, then it would be a good investment as you wouldn't be paying someone else's mortgage every month.

See if you can get a higher heloc loan with a lower rate with them and pay off the other one.

We are also looking to get in contact with a mentor that could help us get to the next level.

Below is some high level info. on how they work.  

I'm curious as to if it even makes sense to try and get a lower number or if the numbers work at the list price to just offer that.