They offer a $10K repair fund to fix damages in addition to SD plus warranty for appliance repair etc.I have no say in whom they choose to move in, whether there are animals, limit on # of occupants etc. they reserve right to inspect property so i have no idea if they can tell me to remodel, paint etc.does this make sense i have a vacancy coming up in October (bad rental timing).

In addition, you'll have depreciation recapture at rates up to 25%.

The landlord shall not commingle such moneys with any other funds of the landlord or hypothecate, pledge, or in any other way make use of such moneys until such moneys are actually due the landlord;(b) Hold the total amount of such money in a separate interest-bearing account in a Florida banking institution for the benefit of the tenant or tenants, in which case the tenant shall receive and collect interest in an amount of at least 75 percent of the annualized average interest rate payable on such account or interest at the rate of 5 percent per year, simple interest, whichever the landlord elects.

No sure about that as buyers want to see the finished product and showing them before pictures will often not be well received.

In addition to conventional loans and FHA loans, if either you or your wife are veterans, the VA also has a rehab program.I'd be happy to discuss my rehab experience both as an investor and as a mortgage broker, and at least help you think through your options. 

When I ask for an income report, I received a spreadsheet with multiple units. 

I know I need to get a credit card and keep my utilization ratio low, but I wouldn't know much about the process of actually receiving a conventional loan from a bank or any type of loan.

The PMS around here are pretty terrible, I've worked with a lot of the larger ones in Cleveland and I think they just take on more properties than they can effectively handle and don't hire enough additional employees to make it work. 

An emergency fund needs to be liquid, and immediately available to you in addition to being low risk and protecting principle. 

A lot of out of town investors like to buy property over here due to the cash flow that they can receive.