I'm curious as to why the previous owner would have rents at 50% below market value, that seems to be extremely low and maybe he knew something about his tenants' financial abilities to pay/not pay.

I have been doing a lot of research on investing (primarily into buy and hold rentals) and the one thing that seems the most unclear is the ability to scale up property acquisitions with obtaining more financing/mortgages.

The mortgage contingency is different: it's about you - and your ability to secure financing. 

Agreeing with @Shawn McCormick, you can represent yourself in transactions and put the buy side commission back into your deals to save you money while having the ability to list properties yourself when you sell.

hello fellow investers i am new to real estate and i am looking for books to read im going on deplyment soon with no internet and looking to expand my knowledge my goal is to house hack a duplex in san antonio TX in the next two years while i go to the university of texas at san antonio to get my nursing degree and become an officer in the air force. looking for any recommendation that has imporved your knowledge ive only read rich dad poor dad and have the bigger pockets beginner guied. 

Waiting for the title to season really hindered my ability to scale my real estate business.

In general, a vehicle purchased for business has a corresponding deduction based on:Type of VehicleUse of Vehicle (% of overall use for business)Certain types of vehicles - namely Trucks (IRS definition of a truck) and full-size SUVs -- experience a full depreciation on the year you purchase them to the degree that the vehicle is used for business. 

Unfortunately, raising money in a hurry is problematic.Potential investors don’t really know your track record or abilities, and it takes time to build a relationship with them.

I don't have the ability for about 2 months to actually start, so I'm just gathering as much knowledge as I can.

The oven temp appeared to be off by about 40 degrees but otherwise works fine.