Have your exit strategy in place before you make an offer on a property so you don't get stuck with unexpected holding costs.

I was worried he wasn't thinking about unexpected setbacks, dealing with contractors, and also, how to balance money vs. time.

you really think you've learned a thing or two, and then some tenant teaches you something totally unexpected (and always costly)......

Does HUD always require a contingency reserve to cover unexpected cost increases?

It can be due to some unexpected expense, some unforeseen health condition that requires spending lots of money or may be simply because planning out the monthly budget ended up costing huge amounts of money.

No wonder we are in a RE meltdown.Too many people are trying(& buying) that have NO money.Bad things happen guys.You need cash to smooth out the unexpected.2.I'm guessing 99% of the people here own NO RE.I have read only a few posters who i'm sure have real world experience3.Too many people jumping into RE blind.4.People who buy books,cd's,dvds & attend seminars are idiots.A few final thoughts...Bad things happen.You WILL buy a property with a HUGE unexpected problem.Plan for it.You will have a renter smear feces on the wall the day before eviction.You are the ENEMY in almost every tenants eyes.

All sorts of weird and unexpected laws in place in different locations.More specifically, though, these tenants are probably on a month to month rental arrangement.

Have their been any unexpected expenses or surprises (such as termite infestations, or other nasty, expensive unpleasantness) with the properties?

We were bidding against outright undocumented workers all the time with citizenships in foreign countries that had free public healthcare for any accidents here (ridiculous.....).

It's not to say that accidents never occurred, but when they do, our dogs never repeat them because we (read: I) put the fear of God in our dogs to never do it again (and no, discipline does not require beating our dogs...just a strong yell).