The the forced appreciation will help out your cash flow too, and all the stuff you fix like new won't break for awhile as a rental (if you did it right), so they compliment each other.I prefer to put 20% down to get out of paying PMI and get the best rates and terms.

., so basically, an 8-9% return before tax, and a forced 35% equity gain?

Armed Forces, Navy, transitioning from military to real estate. 

I was forced to refinance and buy him out early.

But, I've been forced to potentially look at Dallas, Charlotte, and Kansas City.

@Jennifer Beadles So to my understanding most people get Hard money loans because  they are easier to get but with a high interest, but thats okay as long as can get force appreciation on the home and Refi with a more conventional loan and pay back the hard money and use the left over to buy another one?

I target C- to B- areas, and look for the Diamond in the rough, an opportunity that I can force equity via rehabbing, then lift and improve the rents in areas near to Down Town on cities that are growing.Buy small at first, i.e.

There's no way to force them to keep it unless you are prepared to evict them as part of your lease, so my experience is that you suggest it to them as good practice and keep a good insurance policy on your places yourself. 

Don't get hung up trying to force a deal and it appears you are not making that mistake. 

We are mainly isolating our searches to the following criteria for Holds and Flips...For Holds, we are looking to begin with a few properties that tick the following boxes:Able to purchase below market valueHave potential for Forced AppreciationAble to increase rentAble to recycle the deposit into the next purchaseCashflow positive (pre-tax)Weekly rent is approx. double the (buy price divided by 10); eg, $300/wk : $150,000 costFor Flips, we are looking for properties that will provide us with the following:Able to purchase below market valueHave potential for Forced AppreciationGrowth areas (5% or more)