Any tips/tricks for dealing with contractors and keeping them on-schedule and on-budget would be appreciated!

However I am unaware of the tricks of the trade.All that being said, it makes me question if he is the right choice, and what more seasoned investors think/look for.

The real trick is to find a property that has a value add opportunity such as a fixer, a rezoning potential, the possibility to separately deed a multi-family, or to find a property that is undervalued due to neglecting to increase rental rates to market value.

"Be prepared to be humiliated, scorned, treated with disrespect, tricked, lied to successfully, cheated, betrayed, and beaten down to the point where you wonder in the night if God is personally out to make a mockery and a warning of you and your efforts," is not given often enough.

Another trick I've seen lately is that you want to be sure they put the property in MLS. 

Here are some creative ways below:6 Smart Tips for Getting the “First Look” at Every Hot Dealhttp://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2015/05/08...The Highly Effective (Completely Free) Marketing Trick Newbies Overlookhttp://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2015/05/18...

If the Student Loan has a 12 month deferment or more AT THE TIME OF CLOSING (which is the hat-trick) , we don’t have to count the debt.

I think your trick, long before worrying about the fate of the market, is going to be finding cash flow in either of those cities.

The trick with Facebook ads is to test a'lot of different things and compile what works into a single strategy.  

Any tricks and tips?