To make extra sure it appraises high enough for the refinance, this would be after I talk to an inspector and get a few GCs to bid the job, might also get a structural engineer to come up with a repair plan for the GCs to look at when getting me bids.

Fortunately everyone was ok and the insurance company has been no problem at all giving a full pay out which is valued at the purchase price in 2020.The pay out is not enough to repair/rebuild as the house was built in the 1920s and would not make sense in the location it is in.

Unfinished repairs?

Prior-year losses can’t offset W-2 income but can be used for capital gains or future rental income.For audit risk, high earners using REPS face increased scrutiny, so be prepared with detailed records.For material participation, keep a time log with tasks, dates, and hours spent on rental activities like tenant management, repairs, and bookkeeping.

Hey @Devin Bost, so if I need to ship something direct, I just ship it to my lake house and my neighbor will go and put it in the garage for me.I then let my cleaner know about whatever it is, usually toiletries and the like, so she can put them away.I am about 7 hours away from our rental so I do drive over 2-3 times a year to take a look, make small repairs and stock up stuff.

That’s with a property manager handling everything and after their fees and reasonable repairs and vacancies baked in.

That way the investor should have few repairs or surprises in the first 5-10 years because you are owning the property for the best years of the building's life.  

Getting a tenant isn't an overnight thing, you may have repairs to make before getting one, so it could be a few months of paying double before you see any income generated from your househack. 

@Jimmy Leaton If you can rent out your primary home and it can be cashflow positive to help with upkeep from maintenance, repairs, and any bits of vacancy then it's worth exploring more.

What needs to be repaired etc.