This is why the bank's background check focuses so heavily on your credit and income  when getting a non owner occupied residential loan and they are rather loose looking into you when you buy a large commercial property. 

If I am able to bring down both or either price to below market value (but less than 20% below) , is it worth going into contract with if an investor won't make a large return?

When you are ready to move into purchasing commercial mid-size and large MF property, PM me!

Atlanta is a large, diverse city. 

If you ever plan on amassing a large portfolio, you simply can't scale if you're loosing more and more money the larger you grow.4) True, my shared investments are certainly more complicated.

Plus, it's a large college town.

I tried to include all the pertinent information below:Rental Income: $13,200Rent: Currently has a tenant on one side at $550 per month without a lease – I’ve made it a condition of the sale that the tenant has either signed a new lease with my property management company or delivers that side vacant; other side is not rented out due to required rent ready repairs; rental comps in the area show between $550-600 (I’m being conservative and assuming $550).Expenses:Vacancy: 10% ($1,320)Property Management: 10% of gross rents ($1,188)Property Taxes: $2,065 ($905 for City of Memphis, $1,160 for Shelby County)Property Insurance: $450 per year Repairs and Maintenance Assumption: 2% of Property Value per year ($980 per year)Utilities: separately metered; all paid by tenant except for lawn mowing at $25 once a month for $300Advertising: 6% (roughly ½ of first month’s rent) $792 per yearDebt Service: Based on $49k purchase + repair price, 20% ($9.8k) down, 5% 30 year fixed is $2,525 per yearLocation:This is probably where most of my concern is coming from: Western edge of Hickory Hill, Memphis, 38115; major cross streets: just SW of Clarke Rd and Winchester RdAcquisition:Purchase Price: $42k, seller to pay closing costsRepairs: $7.5kTotal Acquisition Cost: $49.5kARV: Large range of comps in the area, best guess is $60kFinancial Metrics:Net Operating Income: $6,105Cap Rate: 12.33%Cash Flow: $3,580 per year, $298.33 per month, $149.17 per unit per monthCash-on-Cash Return: 36.5%Do you think it's a good deal?

A few years of above average appreciation and people are assuming it goes up like this forever.HISTORICAL APPRECIATION= 3 to 5 percent, basically keeps up with inflation, unless you have external factors, such as large population influx, big employee opportunities moving into the area etc.

I work on deals with (hair) on them sometimes but the sell prices are very large into the multiple of millions or higher where I get paid a lot (at least six figures) for my time.I will give you an example.

We have a large portfolio of single family rentals in the Metro Detroit area, so always looking to network new opportunities.