Next step: define your buy box (location, bed/bath, price range, rent target), talk to one investor‑friendly agent and one PM, and analyze five active listings this week.

It's hard to find a deal that's going to check all those boxes but if you buy it as a LTR and you still have options you are on to something. 

Since you’re rebuilding in Ohio, lock in a tight buy box first, then run a fast “Noise-to-Numbers” scan on every lead: verify rent range with a PM, eyeball repair scope, and decide in minutes if it’s a pass or deeper underwrite.

Use your agent chops to move fast: pick a simple buy box in Tuscaloosa/Northport, pull true rent ranges from two property managers, and walk three blocks you’d actually buy on to learn turns, parking, and tenant profile.

Keep it simple: pick one buy box, walk properties weekly, run real comps and conservative rents, and make one offer this month.

Robert, great goals—here’s a clean path: master one BRRRR-friendly submarket in central PA first with a tight buy box and conservative ARV/rehab so you can prove your model and build a track record you can take to bigger deals.

Quote from @Scott Chilton: When a deal doesn’t fit the usual lending box, I like to pause and look at what’s really blocking it.

I work with all the big box lenders and I have worked with a private hedge fund and I have worked with smaller, local HM outfits and NONE OF THEM had anything like that.Because if the deal falls apart I am guessing they keep your 2500.

The most effective way to find the right market is to look for areas that are landlord-friendly, have solid rent-to-price ratios, and steady job growth—Memphis checks all three boxes.

I’ll use it only when three boxes are checked: the cash flow covers debt with margin today, I have multiple exits pre-wired (sell, wholetail, refi to DSCR/seller-finance), and the timeline is short with known scope.