I have no idea how much its worth due to having no experience in this area.

It's not that hard, but if you've never done it and are nervous, it's not a bad idea to hire a realtor to walk you through it.2) You pay a title company to research the title and get title insurance, same as if you used a realtor.3) Not really - but like you said, guidance and knowledge are worth a lot.

If so, was it worth it?

I also hear you that buying a nicer primary home isn’t real conducive to the long term plans.I’ve been calculating 10% vacancy rate and understand I have maintence on two homes if I go that route.I figured the 1600+2400 payments was still under a 33% dti, we don’t have much other debt to consider.I have also considered doing the same thing but selling our existing home when we find another and not doing a rental now, it’s just the positive cash flow is not something I’ve been able to find in our market so I thought that may make it worth doing.Thanks again all good data to consider.

He got stuck when banks stopped financing, and he lost 44 million dollars worth of real estate.

Even if it’s in a bad area, not having to call & coordinate repairmen & your tenants & cut 100-400$ checks every month is SO worth it. 

Have a couple of friends who recommended Over-the-Rhine, Evanston, Norwood, Oakley, and Hyde Park as places that would be worth looking into.

That doesn't necessarily mean a paid membership here, but the point is that denigrating memberships is really just saying "I don't think what I want to achieve, or offer, is worth paying the Pro membership fee", which is about $20 per month.

For a C/D neighborhood, paying somebody higher rates might be worth it as long as they can collect the rents. 

Is it worth it for an agent to do a "Rent to Own" deal?