This seems like a lot of work to save 15% of $35k in taxes (Less than $5k.) especially if you have transfer taxes or title insurance, or you convert your long term 15% rate in to your son’s regular income tax bracket.I hate paying taxes as much as the next guy but this lemon isn’t worth squeezing.

Deduct NEW property taxes after you buyDeduct home insurance costsDeduct maintenance percentage, typically 10%Deduct vacancy+tenant nonperformance percentage(we recommend 5% for Class A, 10% Class B, 20% Class C, good luck with Class D)Deduct whatever dollar/percentage of cashflow you wantNow, what you have left over is the amount for debt service.Enter it into a mortgage calculator, with current interest rate for an investment property, to determine your maximum mortgage amount.Divide the mortgage amount by either 75% or 80%, depending on the required down payment percentage - this is your tentative price to offer.If the property needs repairs, you'll want to deduct 110%-120% of the estimated repairs from this amount.Be sure to also research the ARV and make sure it's 10-20% higher than your tentative purchase price.As long as the ARV checks out, this is the purchase price to offer.It is probably significantly below the asking price.

It allows you to build a stable, solid base.

Ensure your first property remains stable and your finances are ready for another investment.Good luck!

Every license comes with its own responsibilities, fees, and obligations—like insurance, NAR dues, and other costs—so it’s important to think carefully about your goals before jumping in.I have to respectfully disagree with Erik.

However, after running the numbers accounting for insurance, PMI, taxes, vacancy, capX, property manager, etc. the property is estimated -1.85% cash on cash return (-$600/mo) once I fully rent the property.

The problem is that you have to accept the dog but the insurance carriers do not cover bites from Pitbull's.

Once things are stable again, then you can educate yourself and focus on how to improve your investments to protect you against this situation in the future.

Yeah, insurance is likely more than sufficient for most investors.

Agents pay for insurance for these kind of things.