For example people will tell you about price reductions before they hit the market, they might tell you who's motivated to sell etc.So anyway, those are the biggest benefits to being investor/agent as opposed to one or the other.

If you haven't, you need to look at other rentals in the same area and be sure you're finishing yours right.The biggest factor in getting a good tenant is to price it right.

Our goal is to keep a handle on our expenses, the biggest one is the escrow.

You have the potential to ultimately lose out on $999 but the tenant has all the incentive in the world to take extra care of the unit and not to run out as well.

You have zero incentive in finding problems in your own house, thus you are biased and your report is worthless....and the buyers know this

You don't have to .. almost ever lender has a $3000 short sale incentive for the home owner (usually only if they still live in the property).Besides that, you should not be making your own cash incentives.

Your incentive structure aligns perfectly with your client's ;)There is also the bonus of possibly getting some extra $$ from the realtor fees or getting rid of them on your side to make your offers that much more compelling to a seller you're attempting to woo.

I think the biggest thing about the downsize is to pay attention to the local policies.If you are not hearing scuttle but about large troop reassignments or overall downscaling.

The biggest downside is that the driveway goes behind the house, which means it's a pain to keep plowed in the winter (Chicago).

@Kerry Baird Your story really excites me because those seem to be the biggest obstacles I'm currently facing - how to actually complete a transaction while abroad.