I figured that bringing it up is a win win.

So if I raise 20K from a business or friends and family for a down payment, what could I offer in return to make it a Win Win scenario?

@Sofia NguyenI love your enthusiasm..it is one of the winning personality attributes every REI should aspire to have.Keep on doing what you are doing; in less than no time, you will acquire self confidence and requisite knowledge to plunge in..One thing I have learnt is never stop improving...ask whatever question you have on the forum and NEVER think that any question is too naove to be asked.

I graduated from college with a business degree that emphasized real estate.  

We decided to put in a bid at $50 dollars over the minimum in order to beat out anyone bidding just at the lowest price.What I didn't understand at the time is that HUD picks the winning bid on a NET basis after commissions are taken out, and the selling broker put herself down for 3% on both sides of the deal for a total of 6% which reduced my ACTUAL bid by an extra 3%!

It would be wise for any local investors to reach out to Howard and discuss how they may use some of their sweat equity to create win-win deals that will result in the mobile homes remaining in the park and being sold to low risk tenant buyers for the investor's profit.I hope this all is starting to help and make sense.

Thanks for the candid intro, your story reminds me of the Doctor in the cash flow game, most people don't like the Doctor but if you play it right and with some adjustments it is easy to win the game...Welcome to BP, this is a great website and resource for all types of real estate investing.I always recommend these 3 things to people beginning in Real Estate Investing:1) Do a lot of research here2) Do not spend a lot of money with coaches, it would be much better to put that money to work and learn from experience, I'm not against coaches or education, but you need to be careful as there are some that are really bad.Here is a seminar that I really liked, unfortunately the next one is in Atlanta and the one after that in Santa Ana CA but in September. http://garyjohnston.com/seminars/financial-freedom...3) There are many real estate clubs out there, visit them, select your favorites and meet other investors working your area.

If only I had taken all 30 year mortgages, I would look so much better..I think this is where your own personal preference wins, but in the end Calvin, incurring debt can make you much more powerful and create wealth (and drastically move the needle on your net worth north) by buying right (below market value), and increasing cash flow on a monthly basis. 

I graduated from college with a business degree that emphasized real estate.  

A mechanic's lien will not go along with the property if you are the winning bidder providing everyone has received proper notification of the redeemable deed auction and the sale of the tax deed.