We offered our impacted tenants a hotel room while we were awaiting repairs, but both tenants decided it was easier to stay put. 

9) adding multiple ADUs or adding an ADU to a quad looses F/F conventional financing.

I could feasibly pursue multiple deals and if I find one in an area I’d like to live once I move back to the US, I would like the option of renting it out while still living abroad but being able to move in and refi to a better deal with an owner-occupier loan.   

I also have multiple streams of income and the ability to reduce my expenses sharply if needed to payoff a major unexpected expense.

@Ethan Slater here's some info we hope you find useful:Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

Fortunately this isn't a situation that has impacted my relationship with this particular tenant.

.$24K in soft costs (permits impact fees etc)$200K (or less) buildout of the house (size tbd on after-build-appraisal) Likely going with 2/2 A frame 1000 sf.

Point is, (a) it's all but impossible for the investment to go to $0 and (b) you have direct, impactful CONTROL of outcome. 2nd: Back to the CONTROL aspect.

Multiple outbuildings and cottages spread out among the property.

Others prefer to get their information and resources from multiple sources over a longer period of time.