When you are small you can take your time in selecting your applicants, just need to ask the right questions to get the answers you want to know. 

To avoid going through the same poor experience, keep reading.Even if someone gives you a referral here, do NOT make the mistake of assuming that the PMC will meet your expectations, just because they met the expectations of the referral source.In our experience, the #1 mistake owners make when selecting a Property Management Company (PMC) is ASSUMING instead of CONFIRMING.It's often a case of not doing enough research, as they don't know what they don't know!

Put the money into fixed income vehicles of various sorts and walk away and spend more time drinking wine and catching fish. 

As the impacts of climate change become increasingly evident, more individuals are likely to incorporate considerations of air quality and other disaster risks into their choices when selecting a place to live. 

But since J properties generally depreciate over time (not like properties back home which appreciate), the idea of sinking cash into a property that is worth less five years from now is not terribly appealing.Like you say, then the question is what sort of yield can you get, and will it cover the deprication losses?

I learned about the free tools - Zillow, Trulia, Bing Maps, Netronline - how to check title, get BPOs, where to look for bank contacts and sources, how to evaluate the property and develop a bid based upon my initial selected exit and to view REAL deals in progress and watch the results, good or bad.

There is no reason it should take 2 months to get that sorted.

@Chano SocarrasIn our experience, the #1 mistake owners make when selecting a Property Management Company (PMC) is ASSUMING instead of CONFIRMING.

There is sort of a East side/West side thing when it comes to investors that almost sounds like the rap battles of the 80's. 

If you do go with a non-connected lock please change the codes often, I often compare it to a hotel in that if the front desk told me the previous occupant's keys still worked during my stay I'd be sort of annoyed.FWIW, we use ResortLock from Lockstate (no affiliation, just what we use) on all our properties.