If you have high holding costs (financing, taxes, insurance, utilities, etc.) the longer you are holding the less money that you are makingSelling profitably - How long will it take to sell?

@Jeff SkinnerRecommend 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?

Typically in my experience EVERYONE is happy to help.

:Class A Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, 3-5 years for positive cashflow, but you get highest relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% the more recent norm.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 680+ (roughly 5% probability of default), zero evictions in last 7 years.Class B Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, 1-3 years for positive cashflow, decent amount of relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% should be applied only if proper research done to support.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 620-680 (around 10% probability of default), some blemishes, but should have no evictions in last 5 yearsClass C Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, immediate cashflow and at the lower end of relative rent & value appreciation.

These are prime locations, think near downtown or popular tourist destinations where demand for short-term rentals is typically high.

The 1031 is only into like-kind investment real estate and typically is only 1-3 properties and therefore only 1- 3 markets.

I typically will book tax entries as an accrual so that they don't affect the operational accounting.My reports do not tie exactly to my tax return as there are temporary and permanent differences between tax books and accounting books.

Just a case in point, the tiny apartment I live in (800 square feet) the mortgage payment is about 4000 per month, and the typical rent for such a place would probably be somewhere between 1500 to 2000 per month.

Originally posted by @Kelly Watkins:Residential developers in Wichita pass the cost of the neighborhood utilities (sewers, streets etc..) onto the buyer.

In fact, a couple of recent studies have shown that working with a broker typically saves about $10,000 on a residential mortgage.