I just submitted another post about the property under commercial real estate asking about trade booth rentals.

The year is 1999 and you have $200,000 to invest.An entry level SFR 3bed/2.5 bath for a 10-15 year old SFR in Irvine trades in the low $300s whereas new construction in Temacula and Murietta starts under $180k for new SFRs built on larger lots 4bed/2.5.

So, the outcome is better than predicted by the 50% rule.You might say "I'm in one unit, so expenses will be less."

I am a cost estimator by trade and some of my hobbies are renovating houses, woodworking and even building small structures.

They may have been considering a trade-up anyway and this could be a golden opportunity for both of you.

First off, most likely, you'll want to add your website on all materials if the goal is to get the customer to your website.However, more importantly, I'd think though what is the ideal outcome you want to have with the customer and, what's the quickest path to get that outcome.

You are sitting on a gold mine of trades from firefighter second jobs.

The 1099 for forgiven debt gets filed automatically, whether the lender likes the auction outcome or not.

Here are a few that come to mind:1) Investing alone doesn't support the lifestyle2) They invest for retirement, hobby, etc. but their day job gives them more fulfillment3) The day job funds the investing4) The money on the day job is just too much to give up for the amount of work and headache required to earn it5) The day job is a trade or it nurtures a skill that supports the investing6) The day job offers fringe benefits that investing alone can't offer or support7) The day job has a pension plan that gets significantly better if you stick around a few more years.

I have brokers, lenders, investors, PM's, and trades people, on my team.You are starting out at a young age and that is fantastic.