Despite the widespread number of home foreclosures across the country, people are starting to wade back into the real estate waters. Meet some people who decided to dive right into Detroit, one of the hardest-hit housing markets in the country, and turn creative financing and social responsibility into profitability.

Want to dip your toe into real estate? Our Guest Professor for Investing 101 is Greg McBride, senior financial analyst for Bankrate, who explains the basics of real-estate investing and what to expect if you want to buy a home now.

A house should be more than a good-looking investment on paper. In Scam Alert, you’ll learn about an Ohio company that attracted hundreds of people for a property investment that was nothing but paper. The Westhaven Investment Group promised high returns for refurbishing rundown houses but it actually never bought one bit of property.