First investment property

[Chris Palmer]

Looking for some advice on our first investment property. First, some background, We live in the North Texas area, and we found a multi-tenant property which hit listings a few days ago. This property definitely qualifies as the cheapest property on the block. All of the neighbors come in around $50k higher than what this property was listed for. The house was built in 1920 and has some renters which have been there 25 years. Sufficed to say there haven't been any improvements to the main house on the property in that time. The main property is a 2 bed 1 bath. The other house is a 1 bed 1 bath cottage which has been vacant for some time. Some more details. Property was listed for just under $100k, after doing some digging it looks as though the owner has held the property for some time and is now looking to move away from the property due to health reasons. We made an all cash offer for just under asking price. So some questions: 1) Looking at rental comps in the area, We estimate getting $800 and $600 for the properties if they appropriately fixed up. How much money should I invest into repairs and improvements for this amount of rental income? 2) What are the best ways to secure our investment while we are making improvements? I'm worried about theft of appliances and materials while vacant. 3) I imagine that the inspection will turn up some problems. At what point do the issues outweigh us making the investment and walking away from the property? Thanks in advance for your help! Regards, Chris