Here is some more clarity on my plans:I expect to be in between jobs for 4 to 9 months including both retraining and securing a new job (W-2). 

You didn't mention what rent rates you would expect.

I do not expect to pay myself for quite a long time and am good with that.  

I will add that there is an expectation that you can analyze your deals, within a reasonable amount of time, but you should never fill like you have to sign a contract tomorrow. 

It wasn't as bad as I expected it to be.

Aside from understanding how to build the buildings and how much they cost, you'll need to know how to understand how to analyze deals at a higher level to see if they make sense - what are the rents/sales you expect to achieve, what are your financing costs, what's the timeline....I would strongly suggest taking real estate and/or corporate finance classes as well - preferably as a minor if you're able to.  

And yes, those rates are critical when I analyze a property because they tell me whether I'm going to expect cash flow or not. 

My question is should I use all the money that I can get pre-approved for or use a formula using expected cashflow along with my income to determine what my buying limit should be?

I set the expectation with my client at the buyers consultation and so far I've never had a problem. 

We are noticing an uptick, will slow down Derby week and then I expect it to be crazy again.