The reason for this questions is that different areas will offer different success based on different goals.  

I have heard all the success stories of people’s first purchase of 20, 40, 50 units but wondering, how they qualified?

Hello BP,I hope everyone is having a successful and productive 2018 so far!

Kid w/in 2-3 years of future.I worry that by not wanting to be in the "thick" of Syracuse, and not going for rental properties, the probability of success is decreased 33.3%.I am trying to be vague on our specifics so hopefully other uses may see the mindset.Thank you,

Don't go out of your comfort zone just to get a good deal, most auctions are basically site unseen sales with no contingency period, the less you buy in this way the less successes you have to offset a potential loss. 

So we will be utilizing subcontractors, and I wanted to find out how from successful flippers how you coordinate receiving bids on the cost of repairs before submitting a purchase price offer on a home?

I'm in CA too, so its almost becoming a necessity vs a real choice.......See tons of success on BP......and tons of horror stories with OOS..... turnkeys etc..... makes me very hesitant

I have been doing this successfully for 20 years and I still love to come to a site like this to share experiences and get input from other investors.

Awesome story thanks for the inspiration and congrats on the success so far!

I've been growing my education in RE for about a year, and my wife and I have been actively looking for our first deal for about 6 months now.While we wait for that first deal, however, I want to make sure I'm also continuing to invest in gaining practical experience that will help that first one be a success!