Always get an inspection before buying a house. Also, never use an inspector offered by the seller. Get a report from someone that is neutral.
Do not make the assumption that property values always increase. This is not how the market works, and you should definitely not count on this happening. The best thing to do is to invest in a property from which you can obtain a positive cash flow right away. Any appreciation in property value is just going to be a benefit to your income.
When thinking about your real estate investments, consider the time you have available to dealing with the property. Having issues with a tenant can eat up quite a bit of time. If you feel as if you don't have the time needed, consider hiring a property management company.
Buy local properties. You know the neighborhood already, which prevents leaps of faith from losing you money. You will be able to investing in humans know what is going on at your rental property if you live nearby. The only way you have any control over your investment is if you are near enough to manage it yourself.
When you are buying property for investment, you should hire an affordable handyman. If not, you will find all your positive cash flow eaten up by exorbitant repair expenses. A handyman that's good should be able to handle any emergency a tenant has after hours.
If you are thinking about purchasing real estate to rent, hiring someone to manage the property to help screen good solid tenants is a must. Since the rent they pay will pay your mortgage, you need to make sure they have good credit and habits. The wrong property manager could cost you a lot of money.
Hire a reliable property manager. Your tenants should have good credit to help protect your investment. If that does not happen, you may lose the income that you need to help pay your bills.
Even if you are new to the real estate market, you now have the overview you need to venture into this exciting field. See what choices you have and figure out what you can benefit from. You can do well in the investing world, so don't worry!