If a tenant is damaging property or causing a hazardous condition, that would be something you can enforce (I presume your state laws have prohibitions in this regard, or your lease agreement as well).

So you can work for free or you can use the deposit for what it's there for, covering damages, cleaning etc.

You have no damages at this point.

The inspection is an opportunity to (a) document the condition of the rental so I can track tenant damages from that day forward, (b) look into any maintenance issues the tenants may be concerned with, and (c) notify them that a new lease is coming and what that entails.As for rent increases, I don't ever recommend keeping tenants more than 10% below market.

Not dealing with bad tenants (letting them pay late, do damage, etc.)Understand that vacancy is better than having a bad tenant.

And unless they're damaging the unit, I don't think I would go so far as to evict them for not paying the deposit, it will end up costing you more.What you might be able to do (check with an attorney) is charge them a late fee for not paying the deposit.

Jumping in is very nerve racking and I'm trying everything I can to minimize my risk, but I guess I can only do some much planning before jumping right in

Is there a third-party company that offers Damage Protection coverage for midterm rentals?

This is the “free answer” from Google, so it’s worth what you paid for it…https://www.justanswer.com/law/80qys-live-arkansas-neighbor-....Lawyer: LawEducatorUnder the common law of property you are entitled to trim branches from any trees that are overhanging on your property but must do so by exercising reasonable care not to damage or harm the tree.

I filed a claim and my insurance company is estimating the damage currently.