Long story short, we will see more people not using buyers agents and they may work out once in a while but in the grand scheme, they'll get what they pay for.

Originally posted by @Steve Babiak:@Jay Hinrichs - a big difference between property casualty insurance and "mortgage insurance" ... if the OP doesn't understand that, then the OP should first get better educated.Steve the insurance you buy for these scammers is rolled into the entire scheme.. first they want the 500.00 saying your approved for 3% money which we all know too well is not REAL... its a total scam.... but then during the process and once they have you hooked and committed to the 500.00 all of a sudden your credit and the deal does not look that great we just need to go over to this foreign country and buy repayment insurance.. the scammer explains since you the borrower are not really that qualified you need to purchase this insurance policy so that if you default the insurance company will pay the loan back.. and they try to tag you for whatever they feel they can get 1k 2k like in this guys case..  

One person cannot efficiently, hunt for properties, research fair value, talk with sellers, arrange conditions of sale, manage/arrange financing, accept mortgage risk, inspect home, decide on paint schemes, shop for supplies, update place, install new plumbing, clean stains from cement, shop for insurance, interview tenants, run back ground checks, watch market for right time to sell for profit, collect rents, handle late night call on leaky pipe, market rental availability, Handle call during holiday weekend about barking dog, run title searches...You have to find the skills you have and farm out what you do not.

Definitely helps me understand the importance of an initial inspection, and realize that in the grand scheme of things, it's a drop in the bucket when making a substantial investment.

If your protection is “limited” as the title implies with LLC, (Limited Liability Company) and CA is a horrible state for litigation and taxes, and judges give very little respect to elaborate asset protection schemes to protect debtors (you), what option do you have?

You don't want to be trying some new marketing scheme or leadership technique the first time when you get your one shot to swing the bat.

Feedback has been fantastic but no offers yet.I'll post updates as I get themThe jury is still out on this project but I'm looking at a potential profit of $30k-$35k depending on selling price and closing costs.Some lessons learned:Time IS Money - I spent weekends and nights working on this place to save some cash, in the end I could have paid a bit (~$5k) more and had it ready to sell in weeks versus months.Keep track of everything - The amount of data I have from this flip is astounding: Square footage of rooms, kitchen layouts, electrical diagrams, paint schemes & material samples, inspection documents, eviction process, quantity of materials used and of course all of the costs.I'm much more confident in accurately estimating jobs and can spot questionable charges/material quantities - the best part is that the more flips you do the better your data gets!

She likes looking at the numbers, so I show her how the numbers stack up on my note deals.My friend who flips houses lets his fiancee do the home-staging and chimes in on color schemes.

It is cheap in the big scheme of things and is an extra layer of protection.

In the grand scheme of things its a small price to pay for your first impression (listing/web photos, flyers, mailers, etc.)