Again, apples and oranges. 

What we do is very different from what the others in the market offer (and vice versa) so it's not really an apples to apples comparison when comparing our system vs. others. 

However, what the security deposit does do is that it self-selects some of the “bad apples” out.

My primary point is don't expect a rising tide to lift your ship in Albuquerque.

I know a lot of investors, myself included, who own condos and love them.Also, comparing a 4.25% cash on cash return to an IRA is not an apples to apples comparison.

Do one task at a time in each app so you can compare apples to apples.Load a property with pictures and details.Market that property.See what your marketing looks like from the public's perspective.Submit a fake application to see how easy the process is.

I have done a few of these upside down deals and now we just buy move in ready listings and let our record appreciation do the heavy lifting.

Why not get a bid for the whole build job so you can compare apples to apples with what's normal in the area? 

A solid screening process will screen out 90% of the bad apples.   

Then Bakersfield and Apple Valley which has homes in high $200,000s to $300,000s.