Hi Alice...you've gotten some good advice above...I'm going to echo what Karen said about about spending some time working on improving your credit score.

Another issue is making repairs and improvements.

I'm confident that I can improve the cash flow of the property fairly quickly from the very beginning through better expense control and better rent income.

If HUD has a problem with the practice, they should take it up with the buyer, not the listing agent.

I was reading in a book that there is always a good time to find value by improving a property and buying under market value.

But it certainly improves your prospects over a high school diploma.Another twist to college is grades.

I put my money into rehab and improvements instead of a down payment.

Even if we did it wouldn't be practical.

I think it is a wonderful idea, as the properties are being improved it not only helps the town look good, everyone's values should creep up and therefore the cities and counties will ultimately receive more in property taxes.

If it's an investment property & you want to make it really interesting....separate the land & home @ the time of purchase.Own the land in another entity (or by your kids)now you lease it back....you get the depreciation of the 'improvement' (home) & you get to take the land lease deduction, esp worth it if the land is a significant $ value as per the assessor.Around here we found land values can be high because of the larger tracts of land.