The drop in real estate prices have made this time one of the best times to buy investment rental property. But if you don’t know what you are doing, rental property can turn into your biggest nightmare. Here are some tips for investment rental property that can help you get started and keep you on track.

1. Get past the fear – lots of people fail to pull the trigger on investment rental property.
2. Get some knowledge – this goes a long way towards getting past the fear
3. Learn what type of property is the best one for you
4. Its all about location – don’t buy property in a war zone – who will rent your property?
5. Start with something simple like buying single family houses
6. Learn how to finance investment property – there are dozens of creative real estate investing ideas to chose from
7. Save money for a downpayment – no money down real estate usually has negative cash flow
8. Clean up your credit record – a good credit score can lower your monthly payments significantly
9. Buy houses in the “starter homes” price range
10. Only buy houses from motivated sellers – you earn your money when you buy
11. Hire someone to do a home inspection until you have experience to do your own
12. Use a “subject to” clause in any contract you submit to a seller
13. Don’t over improve a rental house
14. Use a lease-purchase strategy to get the best tenants and best rental income – if you make the tenants ‘potential owners” you can even get them to do some maintenance
15. Always do a background check on potential tenants
16. Follow your lease to the letter. If you give tenants an inch they will take a mile
17. Keep accurate records of your income and expenses

These are just a few tips for investing in rental property. Like any profession, knowledge is power. Take time to study what successful real estate investors do. Join a real estate investment club and associate with people that are buying investment rental property.

You may not like to think about profiting from someone else’s loss, but you can find many homes that have been foreclosed on at bargain basement prices. These are homes that were repossessed due to their owners not keeping up with their mortgage payments. They are sold at discounted prices because the lenders involved just want to get their money back with out worrying about making a profit. A lot of times this means that you can get foreclosure rates that are too good pass up.

You will need to be sure to do your research before writing that check though. It’s important to find something that will meet your needs as well as your budget. Many times these foreclosed houses will need a lot of repairs. It also seems that the banks are not responsible for any damages to the properties.

Foreclosures come in all shapes and sizes. You might even find some that are totally run down, with mold and structural damage. The problem with buying these properties is that it can take a lot of money and time to fix them. The mold can actually be hidden in the walls and this is something you don’t want to deal with. The good news is that you will also find foreclosures that are located in good neighborhoods. This property will be worth the price if you only buy it for the land. There may be some other wonderful traits that can make the property an amazing find.

Whatever type of foreclosures you may be ready to buy, you will need to sign several addendums and other clauses that will exonerate the bank from any responsibility for the home’s condition, once the sale has been finalized. This will all be done before any contracts are signed. Because of this, it’s always a good idea to have the property of interest inspected to make sure the home is in good living condition.

Since banks and lending institutions don’t view foreclosures as a way to own the property, you can usually get a very nice deal. They are not interested in fixing up these properties. Their interest is just to get a return on their money. This way of thinking is what motivates them into selling great properties at bargain prices. While this does happen often, there will be situations where it isn’t the case. Before deciding to buy a foreclosure, it will be necessary for you to do your research to make sure the property is worth the money.