Although I’ve been investing and writing about real estate for over a decade now, some questions still make me pause and take a deep breath. Because what’s going to follow is a very long-winded explanation, chock-full of words like “unless,” “maybe,” and “contextually.” And at the end of it, I know you’re going to be disappointed and feel like I didn’t answer your question. But the results would be the same no matter who in the industry you approach – and contrary to what the cynics claim, it’s not because we’re being elusive or are trying to sell you something. (By the way, the people who give you simplistic and overconfident answers are usually the ones trying to sell you something.) The reason is that some of the most common questions in real estate are also the most complex and nearly impossible to answer in any general sense. Here are those questions, along with some better versions of...