Is there an lower cost alternative to granite / quartz kitchen countertops that is still suitable for an STR?   

So if you are currently in the 37% tax bracket then you could take advantage of deferred taxes + a lower tax bracket.

The only way to modify a loan to a lower payment during a time of rising rates is to move a bunch of principal to the back of the loan.

As Stuart mentioned, it gets even tougher with lower price point homes.

This could lower your resale value. 

Basically, there's no free lunch when it comes to taxes.Depreciating property lowers your tax basis.

Quote from @Emory Clayton: From what I can tell, and my personal experience, you will have to lower standards so the Section 8 applicants can qualify.I'm not a fan of Section 8 because they tend to be far more problematic than tenants that pay their own bills.

These figures suggest the property may be overpriced based on current rents, so negotiating a lower price and increasing rents could improve the deal.

Alternatively, you could potentially have negotiated a lower purchase price… or just walk from the deal if it doesn’t meet your underwriting criteria.

In general you want to be above the mid price point to avoid the lower tier tenants that require more effort, have higher delinquency rates, higher eviction rates, and often higher tenant flip costs.