It's usually pretty close to a wash, or when I hold the rate constant it's like 20 basis points (to price, not to rate) or something trivial, coin toss which will win on any given day.I prefer to have my direct lender hat on to my broker hat when working on REI deals (not licensed in your state, don't actually bother PMing me) because your situations are always wonky and I need that direct telephone/IM/email line of communication to the assigned decision making underwriter so I can go over your net loss carryover, or weird Schedule C, or funky deposits, or whatever it is, with her and get it resolved in 5 minutes rather than over the course of 5 days of emailing back and forth through some intermediary. 

May be able to get you into some type of loan program.

Property Purchase Purchase Price $ 215,000.00 $ 215,000.00 Down Payment % 30.00% 30.00% Down Payment $ 64,500.00 $ 64,500.00 Mortgage Amount $ 150,500.00 $ 150,500.00 Mortgage Interest Rate (annual) 3.500% 4.375% Mortgage Amortization Term (years) 15 30 Mortgage Monthly Payment $1,075.90 $751.42     Property Rental Income Annual Vacancy Rate 0.00% 0.00% Monthly Rent - Unit 1 $ 1,700.00 $ 1,700.00 Monthly Rent - Unit 2 $ - $ - Monthly Rent - Unit 3 $ - $ - Gross Monthly Income $ 1,700.00 $ 1,700.00 Potential Annual Income $ 20,400.00 $ 20,400.00 Less: Vacancy $ - $ - Annual Rental Income $ 20,400.00 $ 20,400.00     Annual Operating Expenses Property Taxes $ 1,662.00 $ 1,662.00 HOA Fees $ 2,496.00 $ 2,496.00 Insurance $ 201.00 $ 201.00 Utilities $ - $ - Leasing & Advertising $ - $ - Property Management $ - $ - Repairs $ - $ - Maintenance $ - $ - Accounting & Legal $ - $ - Total Expenses $ 4,359.00 $ 4,359.00 Monthly Mortgage & Expenses $ 1,439.15 $ 1,114.67     Net Operating Income & Cash Flow Summary Annual Rental Income $ 20,400.00 $ 20,400.00 Less: Annual Operating Expenses $ 4,359.00 $ 4,359.00 Net Operating Income $ 16,041.00 $ 16,041.00 Less: Annual Mortgage Payment $ 12,910.78 $ 9,017.09 Net Income / Cash Flow $ 3,130.22 $ 7,023.91 Net Income / Cash Flow (Monthly) $ 260.85 $ 585.33     Less: Depreciation Expense (1/27.5 of cost) $ (7,818.18) $ (7,818.18) Taxable Net Income (Loss) $ (4,687.96) $ (794.27)     Property Metrics & Analysis CAP Rate 7.46% 7.46% Gross Rent Multiplier lower is better 10.54 10.54 Cash on Cash Return (CoC ROI) 4.85% 10.89% Cash Flow Profit Margin 15.34% 34.43% Cashflow / Assets 1.46% 3.27%

Then, learn financing programs, finance is the key to  the door in real estate.

Right after you close on an improved property get an insurance policy that will protect you if there is a loss.  

Instead of ramping up my marketing and waiting until a deal happens, the wholesaler already has a marketing program and deals in the pipeline.On my latest deal, the guy wholesaling the property really went the extra mile.  

Like if I make $3000 on rent per month, but my total costs are stated above are $3,050, do I take a "loss of $50"?

I have been investing in Central Iowa for five years and have had a number of wins and losses.  

because I teach school until the evening, will be traveling throughout the summer, and will be supporting my wife through a pretty rigorous nursing program in the fall.

The risk far exceeds the profitability and I would not want to have a hand in the demise of anyone's dream or financial loss.