If there was a crazy, "out-of-the-box" example of a land deal, ..."

I bought a s**t box house that would cash-flow, added some sweat equity, and went for it. 

I spent 3 years trying to buy a multi-family with the ideal set up of living in one unit alone while collecting rent from the other units. 

But start off thinking inside the box before we venture outside the box.  

We got together when I was 18 and she was 19 and spent our money freely and never budgeted for several years until we decided we wanted to settle down, start a family and start planning for our future.I was able through persistence and luck to secure a lucrative job in the oil field around the time our first child was born.

Rehab includes a new water heater, rewire house and new breaker box, and cosmetics.

I love using the BP calculators to analyze properties, but I have spent my cash on the 14 units acquired in the last 2 years.

I didn't start until I hit shore duty (spent my first 5 years very busy on sea duty). 

Think out side the box pull from a 401k.

Sure for some it works out, but the odds are against you (that said we're in business and by definition the odds are against all off us).If you've made it here then to me you're at the point where if you're going to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars then you at least have the resources to decide where that money is best spent.