They generally have a long list of customers that may be interested in investing in your deal and can make raising money a very efficient process. 

The buyer IS the real estate agent... the question" was how can a realtor buying a property for him/herself " improve their buying efficiency and hang on to more of their investing capital.

I'm planning to replace my windows before fall with energy efficient windows.

Lender terms vary, and are always changing, so you need to seek out lenders that will allow refi sooner than later to make the process as efficient as possible

Johns run a little richer than on the mainland, but 250K for a 5-6 bedroom saltbox or Johnny house (dobie) sounds like it might leave you little room to improve the property (energy efficiency, amenities) to position yourself as the desirable of the student market {gone are the days when you can stuff 5 kids into a slum pit and they deal with it {thankfully} ... today's student does not have a frame of reference which involves "tough"}.As you progress in this venture, feel free to reach out with questions or ideas.  

I wouldn't be surprised if this is $1,000 or more.Both the gas and electric company will probably have rebates for higher-efficiency equipment, and (more subtly) rebates for sticking with their fuel. 

They've been patient and thorough in answering my many questions, honest in our financial dealings, and have done some very nice rehab work very efficiently. 

I think you are in a position to add unique skill sets to more efficiently re-zone properties given your background.  

ROA isn't something I've looked into before, but from what I read, it's an indicator used to calculate how efficiently I can generate using my total asset?

I need one for speaking to sellers efficiently, and another for advertising, mailings, data entry.