Here is our situation: $600,000 cash on hand from inheritanceDesired return of 8-10%Live in Greater Boston Area100% equity on homeWorking full-time in public accounting and making roughly $50,000/year I talked to some financial advisers and none of them suggested the real estate route.

When I started in public accounting I knew within the first few months it's not something that I was interested in doing for the rest of my life or even several years into the future.

IRS Publication 523 details it pretty well. 

Best of both worlds.Biggest difference between us and RG is that we think there are better sources for probate and divorce deals then public records, so we don't offer that.

They have started moving out and the house is not listed for sell publicly at this time.

No public sewage and no public water, Needs 2 new sewage systems.

It is a big help in many ways...1- You have access to see everything all agents see instead of just what the public sees2- You don't have to wait for an agent to show you a property or write up an offer3- You get a commission (usually you can use toward a down payment)4- If you invest out of state, you get a referral fee (again usually you use toward down payment)My advise is (unless you are making a profession of being an agent) sign up w/ a broker that doesn't charge too much on transactions or monthly fees. 

TREC recognizes it as a legitimate strategy.Sometimes the pocket listing approach is actually at the request of the seller, particularly in higher end areas where people don't want the general public tramping through their house all the time.

Unfortunately, most of the general public doesn't realize that nearly all real estate agents are 100% commission-based and will run you ragged as if you're paid a salary if you let them.

My understanding is that the historic sold prices come directly from public records.