They're cheap, but also easily damaged.

So you'll find a house that sells retail to an owner occupant for $50K next door to an REO that was sold in bulk for $7K, so the comps are not a good measure of value.The ones selling cheap need lots of rehab and the ones selling retail are in very good shape, so this is a city in major transition.

Filters are cheap so I buy a case and have the tenants change them every month.

Sounds like you grew up in the depression.Money is cheap right now and deals are plentiful.

In fact, I still was better off claiming standard deductions for myself and my wife this year despite having one house with a mortgage and having purchased a cheap rental as well this year.

Basically I would be getting the two lots (#3 & #4) for pretty cheap (as there is a rental cottage behind the restaurant on lot #3 to help pay the note off) and have a business to sell down the road.

It wasn't cheap to set it all up, but worth every single penney to me.

When my wife is in town, I watch a show on HGTV about doing some cheap stuff to a house to make it get a higher rent.

And a few months later, dang, a water pipe bursts and there is no such thing as a cheap plumber.

I do not know Memphis, but there are good, cheap markets in the US where you can find good owner finance buyers who maintain the house for you.