What are some rookie mistakes that can easily be prevented had you known from the start ?

If the unit has been inspected, but not deleaded, you also cannot do any construction or remodeling in the unit, they consider that unauthorized deleading and it will prevent you from ever getting a lead cert.

Then all the above mentioned preventive maintenance is real good.

Every non-emergency phone call is preventable, even if you’re the manager.

Not only do I make a point of telling tenants when they sign that I can show it for the 30 days before they move, when they DO try that crap I just tell them they will be losing their deposit then,  legally if they prevent you from being able to re-rent it that's their money.Is their lease even over?

Your comparison of political issues (corruption) vs what is needed to be done to prevent structures falling from natural disasters have little to do with each other.

The seller’s mom is currently in an assisted living facility and to prevent Medicaid from taking her property, she signed it over to her daughter, the seller.

If so, how do you prevent your tenants from over using water so you don’t end up with a huge water bill?

I would have been much more timid and not have scaled like this without BP.Another intangible is the MONEY SAVED from advise preventing me from exploring rougher areas because the spreadsheet numbers pop-up. 

My rental is about 3 hours away and I visit it once a month to do preventative maintenance on my steam boilers.