I am here to learn about working with contractors, using tax strategies,  exploring property management, and using tax sales/auctions to secure good deals.

I have been exploring this site with all the education, resources and the forums.

At this point because I know very little about the Chicago area I'd say I am exploring.

I would like to explore possible ways to give myself a competitive edge over other rentals to attract better tenants and possibly net higher rent.

Explore Home Depot for "window shutters, paintable" and you'll discover the issue for yourself.

If she says it can't be done with a traditional mortgage, then I'm sorry but it can't be done and it's time to explore hard money.

. # of companies per city)General knowledge or stereotypes of location (not the best criteria but given that I had more states to choose from than I had time to explore each individual state in depth, my goal was to find reasons not to invest in a state)My results: 12 statesTexas, New Jersey, Georgia, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Florida, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Washington, Arizona, Maryland, NevadaStep 4: For each of the 12 states, I listed out all the cities that had at least 1 Fortune 500 company and cross referenced those cities with a list of colleges from http://www.collegesimply.com/colleges/.

As you explore more and more on real estate investing, you'll find a lot of articles, books, and the likes, where you can find just about anything in REI (Real Estate Investing).

Gives me a lot to go on when exploring other strategies.  

Make sure you explore all the options prior to investing outside of your home state.