What rules for investors have you broken (and maybe routinely break) and how has it worked out for you?

[Larry Turowski]

I have broken so many rules, some out of ignorance, many not.

For instance, I have paid contractors an up-front payment before work is done.  And I've been taken.  But I also have a very reliable contractor that requires an up-front portion.   If I am working with a new contractor I do a pretty good job vetting them and I keep any up-front payment to a small amount.  It is just so difficult to find reliable, reasonably priced contractors who don't require anything up-front.  It has worked out for me for the most part.

I've also worked with people who are chronically late paying rent.  This has been a mixed bag, but probably a bit more on the positive side, considering vacancies are expensive.  I generally have low-middle income tenants and I have never had a case were a tenant didn't _want_ to pay.  They have been unable to, and I have evicted, but they want to be able to pay their rent.

I've also fallen in love with a property.  One of my latest was a borderline deal.  I loved it because it needed almost nothing.  The biggest things I did were to power wash the house, put in new appliances, and turn the utilities on.  I bought it with the intention of renting it, even though it was going to be mediocre from a cash flow perspective.  I ended up getting and accepting a purchase offer on it.   I'll post about it in success stories when it is all done.

How about you?