@James KieferThere are many REI opportunities in different markets - markets in the Midwest and Southeast of the country are great - where not only are the purchase prices reasonable for most RE investors, but the homes are turnkey (new builds or completely rehabbed homes, tenant ready, systems 10 years of life remaining on them, property management teams in place) with appreciating home value AND appreciating rent.

Calvin Lee,You won't really find a 7 cap Dollar General in a strong suburban to urban core location unless limited years remaining on primary lease term and mostly cash deals or very small financing.The brand new Dollar Generals with upgraded construction all around in strong suburban to urban core areas tend to sell for 5.75 to 6.4 caps with new leases in place.The 7 cap new Dollar Generals tend to be in crap areas weak suburban to rural and cheap construction and many times on septic systems instead of county or city sewer.Every once in awhile in a strong location there might be a 7 cap with 10 years left on a high end Dollar General at 3 million in price or up.These have no rental increases in primary lease term so year over year your income dollar becomes worth less and less.

It's great to ask these questions in the forums to get a feel for things but it's not a substitute for getting "official" advice from an REI-savvy tax pro that you have hired.Regarding what to deduct versus what to capitalize (and depreciate over time), your tax pro can walk you through that for each line item.

I’ve been working in this space for over 20 years, and I’ve seen firsthand how choosing between neighborhoods versus suburbs can significantly impact your returns.City Neighborhoods: Wicker Park, Logan Square, and BridgeportIf you’re eyeing Chicago neighborhoods, I’d suggest considering areas like Wicker Park, Logan Square, and Bridgeport.

Terry,Have you weighed out the pro's and con's doing a fix & flip and capital gains versus fix and hold long or short term rentals?

You may also want to look at a cash out refinance to eliminate one or more Heloc or a few credit cards to lower your DTI and outgoing monthly debts.A heloc is a risk since its an open end mortgage like a credit card which carries a higher risk versus a 30 year mortgage. 

I don't have to visit my properties much because I have a team in place for each thing, systems in place to make most tasks automated (cleaning scheduling, guest communications, etc.), and emergency systems in place for when an emergency occurs.

So there should be a difference if the house was damaged by flooding versus winds/tornado. 

The township may eventually update its records based on this data, but it’s not an automatic or instant notification system.4.

However, they no longer have the property in their system due to release of mortgage.Any options when the bank owns the property?