However, if it does work out as a rental, my calculations indicate that I will earn significantly more by renting and holding the property for a few years before selling. 

I dont need full written up reports, but someone to come along and be an extra set of eyes and point out anything of notable concern.property inspectors in Kansas City Missouri feel free to contact me :)

Like you as a mortgage underwriter, I have many years of experience being a professional supporting real estate investors as a CPA, but I now wanted to become a real estate investor myself.In late November of last year, like you're doing this November, I wrestled with the question of investing locally with a 4-unit purchased with FHA financing vs. investing out-of-state and got a lot of great advice.Like you, my goal is to retire within the next 10-15 years via real estate investing.As a result of some of the advice I've read through the forums (I would recommend you pay attention to guys who have been in real estate for decades like @Jay Hinrichs rather than the younger folks who are often just pushing their turnkey products) and speaking to investors at local real estate groups, I decided that given my place in life I would be wiser to place my bets on California appreciation over the next 20-30 years rather than investing in some beat-down property in Cleveland for an extra $400 or whatever in cash flow per month.Given the facts that (1) I could get into a property for a measly 3.5% down, which would free up cash to invest in other places if I so chose, (2) I was already throwing away rent every month such that I could still be cash flow negative of $650/month (what I was paying in rent) and still be better off because a portion of my monthly payment would be building my equity and the rest would be tax deductible, and (3) I'm in my 20s and have the time to take a long-term view of appreciation potential, it was a no-brainer to go the FHA 4-plex route in LA, despite the fact that it is one of the most expensive markets in the country.This isn't to say that the process was easy.  

They turn the houses extra space into rentable units collect rent and do not pay taxes on the rented space.

Bye bye house, cars, retirement, rentals, and any future earnings if those don't cover it.

I have seen bk last 2+years, all the time cost legal fees (if you have atty), but earning interest at the same time.

And if you can save an extra 2000 dollars a month because thats what you were paying for rent that is also good too.

All of the notes where I found that the property owner and borrower that didn't match were first position.I also see the appeal in modifying a loan for an owner occupied underwater property assuming that you acquired the note at a discount sufficient to provide room to do so and still earn a profit. 

We will often have some extra cylinders available and also keep the cylinders removed for future use elsewhere.

That could be some extra cash that you didn't have to spend money to market for.If this is of interest to anyone in the Rockingham or Guilford county areas or the Winston-Salem area in North Carolina, please, PM me, or email me from my bio page.Thanks for reading!