Nice try though.Myth 4: I'm hands-on, so I materially participate"Material participation" is defined by the IRS, not by your Facebook friends and not by YouTube gurus.

There are multiple ways to qualify for "material participation" but this would help to keep someone else under 100 hours. 

But we do have a few other things we didn't have ten years ago: A historic housing shortage caused by 15 years of under-development and driven by a demographic shift (demographic changes are as predictable as time itself), very high purchase and rental demand, and continued upward pressure on rents and prices.I agree with you that in many ways it has gotten harder to invest.

Spend more than half of your total working hours in an RE business in which you materially participate.2.

Know the prices of your trades, know your material costs, know your end sales prices. 

Potential hangups with materials?

What you may save in material you will make up for in engineering and architecture fees. 

Two coats of paint including ceilings and trim for a 1200 sqft. house in our market is at least $5k including materials.

Therefore, you really need to have a great team in place and be able to source labor and materials at "in house" prices.

Discuss timelines, costs, and any materials that might be needed up front.