After waiting for several months, I purchased a 2 bed / 2 bath condo in Fremont, CA for some ridiculous price at the time and with a mortgage that I could not afford and rented a room to various co-workers to cover about 50% of the mortgage. 

If you are willing to put in your sweat equity you will likely be able to land a deal on a good potential rental and just live there for a short time I was able to find a small house with a garage apartment several years ago which we lived in and it turned out to be a great cash flow property although it wasn’t a standard duplex.

Hi, there are several lenders who will do smaller values in that range.

I have only been a member for several weeks and have already been connecting with folks from all over.

If there is no deferred maintenance and the properties are in good condition, you should be able to get 25 year amortization and a 5 year term from several different area lenders. 

PCR is nothing more than an idea of whats going on, the service company does them, and many times the contractors are idiots, if you have to turn everything on when purchasing one, to feel comfortable, the deal isnt good enough, it could range from a missing water filter, or several split pipes, to a bad fill valve or cracked toilet tank, if you really need to know, air test it, if you dont know how to do that, you probably shouldnt be looking at these properties. i havent hired an inspector in over 15 years, they are a waste of money for me, but I know construction and systems, the bast thing an investor can do is learn construction and the trades, at least enough to know what you are looking at and whats ok, and whats not, even is you dont do any work. sorry to be harsh, but knowing this stuff separates the men from the boys.

I have done several roofs, not rocket science but it is hard work.

@Michael Lee@Linda WeygantI listened to Linda's podcast a while back and I know that she is a CPA that is on the board of several HOA's.Maybe she can help you.My only concern is that it appears that you need a review done and you may need a CPA licensed in the state of SC.

After looking at several dozen single family properties (more or less with no rehab necessary) ranging from $130-$175K, I’m seriously beginning to question how you make money with a long term hold single family rental given the tax rates in desirable school districts and the lack of any exemptions on assessed value for owners not occupying the property.

Hello guys,My parents own several properties in San Jose and have been using the same tax guy for 20 years or so.