You need to figure out what will make you happy...what happens if your RE investment goes up in smoke tomorrow, what then?

I'm starting with about 50k so I figured I'd just pay cash out of pocket for all that.

Now some buyers think they have it all figured out and don't care what I think and that's fine.

Glad you were able to get everything figured out!

thanks for the props Dealman.moon,i started by figuring out the best way for my family to handle my grandmother's estate after her death.

It was a nerve-racking experience but the beauty is, we have our day jobs to support us if we do make mistakes.In hindsight, my suggestion to you would be to study up on how to figure out if a deal makes sense financially and stick to some baseline ROI figures that you personally set.

Taxes on a non-homesteaded house in most school districts is probably 2.8% +/- so figure about $4K/year, Fire and EC insurance is another $700-$1,000, I guess HOA fees are a few hundred a year.So, with NO VACANCIES, NO REPAIRS you're looking at less than 6% CASH ON CASH.

Be creative in figuring out ways to find and contact motivated sellers.

By that time you should have some good equity built up.You need to figure out your rent income for all 3 properties and use these 4 major monthly expense factors:1. mortage per month2. hm owners ins. per month3. property taxes per month4. property management fee per monthI know that if you can collect at least $300 a month from each unit, you should be positive or break even with no money down, paying a manager, and you do not have abnormally high property taxes (depends on the county and state).

I have yet to figure out all of the details, but I want to keep the ball rolling on investments so that I have enough money by the end of 2008 to quit my job and be a stay at home mom.