Having done both REI and a construction company I can see the relationships, and can also see they are two totally different animals on a large scale ;) Personally, the REI is not my target customer, a waste of my time, there are bigger fish out there I'd rather fry. :) I see my REI business as related, but separate, totally different contracts, legal entity, and business model.

I can do CMA's all day long and all over Virginia, but if I am not a market expert in the target property's location, than I cannot be confident in the CMA's accuracy.

You can target larger homes with cheaper land to get a bigger cost seg. 

If you are targeting these areas with a roommate for a 2 bed, your share will be $3.5k / 2 = $1.75k  or $1.16k if there's 3 of you per month in rent give or take depending on your agreement. 

You could also pull public records on properties that have sold within the last few months that are in your target area.

As in avoiding litigation, lawsuits, smal claims disputes and so on.And since laws and codes are location-specific there's no easy way to CYA without studying the original sources.But as most landlords here know, you'll still get plenty of hands-on experience in small-claims court handling evictions or monetary claims and so forth.Sadly, if you're a landlord long enough, you may also become the unlucky target of an ambulance-chaser betting on a quick payoff from an insurance company.There are already gurus teaching seminars on that.

I thought conservatives were supposed to be big on ensuring that the government doesn't use its power to suppress the Constitutional rights and civil liberties of its people...Though if you believe Tim, shooting an unarmed, handcuffed guy in the back is not really a violation of any rights or liberties if the person doing the shooting is in a high-risk job and has to wear a bullet-proof vest to work every day.

Perhaps finding out more about what your target renter seeks could help you determine better what areas to scout out.

The SFR's I am looking at are as follows: - built from 2008 to 2010 - Cost to build new from $149k to $155k (same cost to build now) - Target acquisition prices of $133k to $139k (through short sales and FSBO's) - Monthly rents of $1,200 to $1,350 per house - Annual taxes of $2,000 per house - Annual insurance of $900 per house - Maintenance should be lower than normal for awhile due to age of housesBy my calculation, I am looking at being in these houses at CAP rates between 8% and 8.5%.

I can definatly see another year of searching if I target the elusive 2% solution in my market.