Make a spreadsheet with current income and expenses and then figure out how long until rent surpasses expenses.

First you need to learn to separate the following:Maintenance: usually things related to wear & tear or tenant damage.Repairs: usually broken items like doors & windows, caused by tenant or nature.Capital Improvements: usually expensive things that wear out: hot water tanks, furnaces, roofs, etc.The seller is correct that Repairs & Capital Improvement items should not be a factor for awhile (ALWAYS get your own inspection to confirm).

The supply and demand are pretty balanced.Most of our growth over the past 5 years is from in-migration from more expensive states.

Put in expensive toilet paper and see if you get comments on how nice and cushiony it is.

Weather also makes insurance more expensive - wind and hail damage properties. 

There are many pieces that are left out & everything seems to be a push to buy a very expensive coaching package. 

A couple months of vacancy, a soft rental economy, or a major expense could eat up your equity.

Austin is more expensive for sure, but way more upside and you can handle a lot of issues yourself!

My first question is do I pick a good, better, best system that costs from less to more $$ and do I justify the more expensive energy efficient system to grab a little higher rents since tenants will save money.

It is possible to self-manage and save on this expense (or at least keep it for yourself).