Real Estate Basics

[chisness]

I'm in college right now using poker as basically my only income. At the end of the year I plan to invest in some mutual funds since these seem easiest, least risky, and will let me frequently add money without paying new fees each time.

I feel like real estate investments would be more interesting since they're more "real" and possibly more profitable. I bought Real Estate Investing for Dummies (but left it at home). I probably should do some searches, but if someone could provide me with the basics, that'd be good.

Things I'm wondering about:
1) What are key factors for selecting properties?
2) Where do you buy properties from (auctions, foreclosures, newspaper ads)?
3) Is buying then renting out the easiest method? (I don't believe I'd have the resources/capability to do things like buy, fix up, and sell.)
4) How do you advertise the property to get rentors?
5) For local properties, do you do maintanance things yourself (this would seem to make sense since it would only be one proprety to start with and would be cheaper)?
6) Should I save up for something I can afford (like a cheap apartment) or is it possible to get loans from the bank? I have no real income, but maybe my dad could do it for me? With these loans, do we only have to put ~10% down and then just profit from whatever the rent is over the mortgage?
7) How does this usually compare to the market in terms of profits?