This is a big spread, I know, but houses in the neighborhood are selling in this range and mine has some of the more desirable features (waterfront, remodeled kitchen/master bath, and tile/laminate floors where most have carpet).

Learn from the masters!

This is a master class on how not to do something.At this point a commercial attorney is needed and one maybe that has litigation experience if it gets that far.You spend money in the beginning to set things up right going in.

@Lane Kawaoka nicely put - I am also a mechanical engineer with a masters in management , but by the nature of my job i have 1 as well :-)I have looked at passive investing , but for that return i have other options and am not comfortable entering in to real estate I am ok to loose some money , if i can learn - everything i did the first time - it was a flop - except love ( was lucky to find my sweet wife ) and my career ( chose the right one the first time )

We steer away from low income and master our markets once we go in.

This becomes your master lease/rental agreement for building your RE empire. 

Master leasing a property with landlord permission to Airbnb full-time even though you're never there.

These are my areas of “masters study” where I could targe the areas of real estate that I wanted to learn, even though they don’t quite equal the credential of a Masters.

(the house in that neighborhood are selling for $220k move in ready). by spending that much to fix up the kitchen, add a master bathroom and a laundry room will that increase the value of the home, and how much of that $55k can I deduct on my taxes. thanks.

Taking Action is the most important part of investing.You are thinking in the right direction that making a decision on the timing of your investment and the market you invest in is your first action.My first property was a house hack - I bought a three bedroom house, lived in the master bedroom, and rented out two rooms for $600/month all bills paid.