My personal favorite production level are single agents doing between 18-40 deals a year that have a investment or work a decent amount of investors. step 2 at 9 AM on a weekday send out a text to each of them explaining what your looking to do and asking to set up a time to talk.

It really comes down to your comfort level with debt and your long-term strategy.

I haven't been expanding my business with LMHA since the end of 2016 per my posts above so I don't know exactly what changed, but I expect the outsourcing of inspections to private industry + some executive level leadership + replacement of staff with new faces excited to serve the needs of HUD/Landlords/Those In Need has resulted in an agency I will develop more business with.The HCVP will always be a double edged sword for landlords (See Section 8 Bible discussion) but for now I have discovered it is finally worth the effort to participate in the program.I specialize in Toledo's transition neighborhoods, discounted houses on the edge of nicer areas but also on the edge of trash...the Section 8 program allows me to get long-term tenants who are a good business model provided they are consistently managed and visited/inspected for additional "visitors" (relatives and random dogs/cats) and damage/housekeeping which can destroy a home if left unchecked.You need to know the rules, repair and renovate for long-term durability, prepare for inspections thoroughly and keep a team of contractors who will hold those standards...after 8 years we have been through a hundred inspections.

Quote from @James Shannon: One BIG concern that I have as I research Baselane (and other, similar options) is that they provide access to my money but they're not actually bank and don't have bank-level security.

I guarantee Musk cares more about his money, property, kids, and bathroom floor than the hired help, but that doesn't mean he is better suited for the job or that he has the time, skills, and energy to handle it.Maybe you're part of the small percentage that can do a better job.

However, pricing in Austin is still substantially above pre-pandemic levels.

Hey @Ana Mills, this ultimately depends on what your current portfolio looks like, your entity structure, and your plans to scale or not.If you have a few STRs and no plans to grow, it's beneficial to have separate bank accounts and credit cards for each property.If you plan to scale to 10+ properties and hold each property within it's own entity, maybe just a checking account per entity and keep some credit cards at the holding company level. 

To protect the floor or more importantly the lower level ceiling in the case of a leak/overflow form the washer. 99% of them never do anything their entire life. i would have balked at a $500 estimate for that job.Ps.

@Kenneth JohnsonTo invest in real estate, build a strong financial foundation, educate yourself, network, start small with house hacking, FHA loans, and savings, consider creative financing options, build sales and negotiation skills, and have realistic expectations.

This can help with limiting the time your unit sits vacant.These situations can get tricky, but I always recommend staying level headed during your interactions with the tenant.The worst case scenario is the tenant ends up unhappy that you don't want them to break the lease early and/or they don't want to pay for an early lease break (hopefully defined in your lease agreement with them) and ends up damaging your property, costing more, prior to their actual move out date.