Still in the New England area which is pricey an I know I said cash flow wasn't the most important thing we def would not like to be cash flow negative either.

We are also big fans of DealCeck.

1328 Illinois Ave.Security Deposit15001475 totalPet Deposit200Stanly Steemer-162Attend-18Stanley Steemer-36Attend-16Dry - AC (2)-18Air out - fans-2Replace filter-6Sweep front, kitchen-6Remove trash-3Cut front yard-25Car storage67

This actually extends to first time renters as well...it is surprising to me how often people do not understand basic functionality of food disposers and plumbing in general; circuit breakers; GFCI outlets; 110v vs 220v outlets; ceiling fans (pulling air upwards, or pushing it down?)

Clearly, I'm a fan of home inspections.  

You'll want to learn more ways to increase your income now and in the future, keep your expenses low, and take the difference to invest into assets, real estate/business.I'm a huge fan of the house hack and this will probably be one of the best strategies for you to get started and take action while giving you a great return because of the low % down needed to get started.

We plan to have new floors put in and re-do both the kitchens and bathrooms, put new floors everywhere, fix some drywall issues, install electric fireplaces where the old gas ones are, replace the a/c units, install more efficient bathroom fans for better circulation, move laundry room to the kitchen and make the dining room half kitchen and half dining room, as well as a few other things. 

One "student" has a side gig: mining bitcoin - lookup what open pit mining rigs look like on Amazon- ten fans, thousand wires.Or they have a grow in closet or in the bathroom -black or silver plastic with zippers and lots of vents and fans.Bill it to tenants they all know who is doing the power grab.

@Marian Fine FruehI tried RentRedi and not a fan of it.I recently just switched to Buildium for accounting purposes to help with my clients.Closing cost is not an expense unless you plan to flip.

I'm not really a fan of big cities like Chicago but I might be interested if the area is good and I can attract great tenants.