Would anyone invest, or has anyone invested in Portsmouth, OH, or around that area? 

The computation entails selling the property for the assessed value of $1.5 million, resulting in a $650,000 capital gain.

@Paul DentingerRecommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

I moved out from Omaha about 4 years back, but I have a great investment agent there if you want his contact information?

Future rental income is not able to be used.Keep in mind that retirement assets (401K, IRA, etc) are eligible towards reserves, and so are any other investment accounts.Rental income is only used towards the income portion of qualifying, not towards assets.Hope that helps. 

I am starting out in my real estate investing journey and was hoping to see if fellow investors recommend pursuing short sales, banked owned properties and foreclosures, versus pursuing typical MLS properties or off market properties with distressed properties or sellers.  

What kind of deals do you invest in?

Hello,I am a mortgage broker who does a few personal investment deals a year and used to go to quite a few ct REIA events.

But since I'm a newbie, I'll ask anyway and risk ridicule.The question centers around what goes on behind the scenes in  real estate investing. 1.

Into yourself, learn a skill and use that to increase your income & generate more cash to really invest.