That term, for tax purposes, refers to someone who buys and sells property as a part of his or her trade or business.When doing lease option assignments you never take ownership of the property, so the term would not apply.That being said, income from lease option assignments is considered ordinary income and is taxed as such.

That, and having reserves set aside, in case something big breaks.All of that said, the numbers looking pretty promising (though I don't know anything about what fixup costs you might have).Refinancing #2 - because it's a 5-unit, it's considered commercial for lending purposes.

Jon, thank you for your suggestion.I did check the rentometer, I think websites like zillow and rentometer are getting smarter day after day, however, they still don't have the capability of picking the comparables based on the same school district, which makes their estimate totally off.I don't know if it's a good idea or not...

It is nice to talk to someone in the U.S. and to deal with a company whose purpose is to service the customer, instead of trying to lead a homeowner into foreclosure.

A list "legal documents" and their purposes.

One unique thing about Detroit compared to other large municipalities is that Michigan's municipal funding system is completely whacked.

But this is a 2000 sqft house built in 40's probably, and comparable analysis shows that this is a fair price.Which price is the fair price?

All the best to you and maybe we'll connect sometime to compare notes since we'll be working in the same market and at similar levels in our REI careers.

I read "Rich Dad Poor Dad" about a month ago and it gave me a new purpose in life after pursuing a career in education, and then really not wanting to pursue a career in education.

It's not quite apples to apples for me this time since my last property was bought in 2010 when the market was a lot less competitive, but *knock on wood*, it's looking like deal-wise this one will be comparable to rental #1 (the duplex), and be better than #2.