It just bothers me that there are people that take advantage of them.

At least you have the advantage of being from there, but investing long distance is tough.

The downside, as I found out just today, is that my plans to get involved in the off-mls area might be hampered by the fact that there is a lot of competition for deals due to low inventory.

I'm sure you are aware of advantages/disadvantages of having a month to month vs longer term lease so I won't get into it.

Now there is a ton of competition from other investors, wall street, and even some retail buyers trying to get a good deal. 70% rule means that you take the future sales price or ARV of the home, then multiply it by .7, then subtract your rehab and carrying costs and this number is your maximum offer to make the deal work.

You could try to take advantage of a VA loan since your husband was in the service- i know they allow for a 0% DP and you can propabally most of/if not all of the closing costs paid for- you may be able to get away with next to no money at the table!

From what little I've seen, it's very competitive and the discounts from FMV are very small, in the case of 2nds, these astronomical discounts from UPB leave NPN note buyer at nearly 100% of FMV.

My wife works in the city so we only need one car and we take full advantage of city living.

That is the main advantage of a duplex IMO.

Its not a bad thing when it does happen, they get a little competitive.