With this combination, you can cover any financial questions with the mortgage broker and any neighborhood, data, comps, questions with the agent.As a buyer remember it costs nothing to use an agent, the cost is incurred by the seller.

Data is expensive, the software is expensive, labor is expensive.

Real estate, investing and banking is extremely complex.

Use Zillow and rentometer.com to get data and analyze a few from your home to see what type if returns there are.If these meet your investment criteria then start looking in person.

She mentioned this one 58 unit apartment complex that she has been trying to sell for years but for some reason she cannot sell it. 

If you are only trying to do it with apartments, you will likely be hard-pressed to find a complex that will allow it.This works best when the market has an abundance of units and sellers have a tough time finding good tenants.

Just wanted to give you that data point.

Yes, bloggers are reporting data, but the market a year ago was most inflated.

The rental portion will be treated the same as if your entire property was a rental, except only part of your expenses will count.And if this was not enough complexity, the fact that you live in this property adds extra rules to deducting some of the shared expenses.

I've tried the local sheriff dept and city data with no success.