We invest for long term buy and hold in good areas B+Due to extreme highly demanding W2 jobs we are looking for credible FULLY vertically integrated turnkey companies to partner with.

So even if the cash flow is only 3% or 4% cash on cash, that’s enough to provide a protective layer to cover unexpected items.To me, the cash flow is NOT to put spendable cash in my pocket NOW but rather keep the property self supporting while it increases in value over the long term.In addition, every property a purchase has a cash reserve fund - call it my rainy day fund or my Sominex account (ie I can sleep at night knowing if the furnace goes out I have $8,000 in my reserve fund to replace it.)One final note, I have found once one reaches a certain net worth, cash flow no longer is a concern, there is always as much cash flow as anyone wants.Final note, who will have more cash flow someone with $1M investible cash or $3M investible cash?

Kind of figured that the loan side would be a long shot.  

I will do my homework on long distance REI (even tho the markets are 1-2 hours away), but have a couple questions- What are some of your key metrics/signs you use when identifying a new market?

Depending how long your LTR was in there, you might need to fix or update a few items. 

Not only am I sorry you lost money but it gives a black eye to us legitimate lenders everywhere.

The market has changed a lot over the last 10 years, it went from a cash flow play to an equity play.

S&P 500 index fund has given a historical AAR (Average Annual Return) of 10 % in the last 60 years and 14.5% AAR in the last 15 years as of today.

Chicago isn't going anywhere.Compare that to other cities in Florida, I think the population growth is amazing but long term with hurricanes/climate change, it will be harder and harder to own there. 

If its more of a long term strategy or tax strategy it can work.