Additionally...minimizing vacancies, maintaining the property, handling problem tenants, and overall just being hands-on rather than an absentee landlord.

Even if you could qualify for as many VA loans as you wanted, they're not always the fastest and cheapest method of financing, so i would suggest exhausting all other financing options first.

it's a lot easier to fill an empty apartment than an empty warehouse.

More of a business than an investment, IMHO, but some people are successful doing that.Fix and flips are still possible, but more difficult due to declining prices in many areas and the difficulty in your end buyers getting loans.

I personally think this would be better than an actual p&s agreement.

Good for you - I have discovered long ago that a seasoned investor knows lots more than an agent - agents are trained to protect their broker, represent buyers, list properties and to stay legal - I have always inferred that if agents knew what investors know - they'd be investors  representing themselves.Keep your offer simple - you don't need all that stuff that agents are required to have in their offer (you know agents do not write contracts - they can't unless they are a attorney - they can only legally fill in the blanks on a form contract of sale) - so over the many years of investing - negotiating - developing and trying to make money in real estate - I have the good fortune to have created what I call my Skinny Contract   - this is a one page contract with only one out clause - it is easy to understand by the seller and all involved in the chain that reaches to  the settlement table.    

It seems so simple written like this, but most overseas property buyers would choose the latter, probably because it’s much easier to see how you could enjoy a holiday than an excel spreadsheet.

They will send you a letter advising you that if you deposit more than an X- amount (what ever they recommend) you will be taxed from the IRS.

http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/hcd/o/Rent...Eric Clayton: I work in San Francisco and don't want to commute more than an 1 hour to get to work by MUNI or BART.

In the basement, I was a little leery about the exhaust vents that went from the hot water tanks into the chimney due to a slight negative pitch on the ducts, as well as some gaps in the ducting (CO issue).