I would start with the Fair Market Rents (FMR) in the county where the property is located and use that as a basis to negotiate from there.Thanks Jaycee, are to referring to the HUD website? 

If you have a real estate attorney you use regularly, they normally will do it for a low price as well.

I got recertified in the military on my weapon every 6 months and without regular practice and in a controlled environment I still had difficulty with the target.It gives many (not all) people a false sense of security, like they're going to pull out their weapon and go Steven Segal on the situation, when the most appropriate response most of the time is to exit the situation (run/hide/etc).There are reasonable alternatives to carrying a firearm that are at least worth considering for your particular situation. 

i wasn't in a position to buy it by then so i referred them to a friend of mine and he bought it. 

I think this would make sense in the long run for the rental property as it will extend the life of everything it touches like the Sink, faucets, showers, water heater, dishwasher, and Clothes washer while also providing clean drinking water in addition to the reverse osmosis drinking water system I already have installed.The main problem with this hardness level is that we get a major deposit buildup on all of these items, which will eventually clog up the faucets for tenants and lead to rusty shower enclosures that take forever to clean.In addition to this, it looks like we could likely have the salt added every couple of months by the property managers in addition to that it would allow for a quick inspection from them, and then also we would instead bill the cost of the service onto the ledger for the tenants.For reference, it does not look like the landlords in the area have water softeners.Thank you everyone for your input ahead of time.

But I do refer any EMD request over to a contact of mine who happens to be one of those 20%. 

If it's not included in the rent, many companies charge a flat fee to monitor & pay utilities.2) Assuming you're referring to resident benefit packages, renters insurance, and other charges for services the PMC offers to tenants. 

If not, even though you are a re pro, losses are passive & deductions are limited.There are 7 scenarios that will qualify as material, and you only need to meet one:*500 hours*Substantially all participation*> 100 hrs and at least 1/2*Significant participation*5/10 years*Personal service activity w participation in last 3 years*Continuous participationTo materially participate, you must be involved in the operations of the activity on a regular, continuous, and substantial basis.Once you pass the pro test, the material participation often comes along for the ride.You can elect to aggregate all rental real estate for purposes of measuring material participation under Sec. 1.469-9(g).Your time spent on all your rental properties (STRs don't qualify) counts as one activity, making it easier to materially participate.In order to make a strong case with your CPA and the IRS you need to document your hours.Best practice is an hours log where you are as specific as possible.

These are just a few basic things I'd look for.In reference to the agent, you definitely want to find the investor focused agents that does a lot of deals and lean on them for their expertise.

I needed a consistent cash flow while still holding onto my regular full time job.