His book really sounds interesting and might be something you'd want to check out.

My ultimate goal is cash flow so it sounds like the SFH is more of a long-term hold investment relying on appreciation.

@David Clinton III..Sounds great.

Small fix ups are ok (paint, carpet, counter replacement etc.), but larger ones are probably not something I want to really get into at the moment (full kitchen remodels, full plumbing or electrical replacements, etc.).

@Jo-Ann Lapin That sounds great!

It sounds like I just need to be making offers constantly in order to catch that one great deal from a motivated seller.

If so and they are taking the property as collateral this sounds like a standard mortgage situation. 

To me, it sounds like you're saying:If I expect to put 100 offers out and get 1 of them, exclusivity should be in playIf I expect to put 5 offers out and get 1 of them, exclusivity should not be in playDoes that sum things up accurately?

Which means you can assume that in the event of another downturn (not to sound negative, it probably wouldn't be as bad as the last).

For replacement reserves (at least in Texas) the lender will generally want $250-300 per unit each year.