For our clients, we separate repairs into catergories: 1) Health & Saftey - highest priority to avoid lawsuits2) Property Preservation - don't want a $500 water leak repair to become a $5k repair later3) Government Required - for city & S8 inspections4) Marketing Negative Impact - who wants to rent a "purple" house?

We also try to note everything wrong that is readily visible and then categorize each issue as:1) Health & Safety2) Property Preservation3) Marketing Negative Impact4) MiscellaneousThis can help owners make better decisions on which repairs to prioritize, especially if they have a limited budget.

The key with the HELOC strategy is understanding the concept of arbitrage.

Just remember: most negative reviews are written by problematic tenants.

This can be a good thing and it can also have negative effects in some instances. 

So it's just extremely unlikely that you'll be able to generate a return that would justify paying the taxes in 1 or offsetting the interest you'd pay in 3.If you save up and buy a traditional LTR at or above the median price, you'll likely be break even or negative. 

I'd check out Natalie Kolodij's podcast- she knows her stuff and she makes the concepts simple and interesting. 

Diversification is the only protection for Black Swan, large scale negative events. but can this happen again, Absolutely.

Some investors will cash-flow negatively, be upside down, or both but every REI strategy comes with risks.

I'm not bold enough to buy real estate at negative leverage - few deals in my area (and I presume, Manhattan), are trading at "Cap Rates" greater than 7%.