If you remember that it comes in seasons, that can get you through the rough patches.2.

In addition, we used a 'waterstop' patching material found at HD or Menards.

I will gladly work early and late to fill gaps, knocking down walls, or feathering in a newly patched and scraped ceiling, I am the final stop gap to my rehab.

Above the unit, such as in a tree (or in the attic, or on the roof).If it's in a tree why not just leave them alone, they are part of the local ecosystem.If they are in the attic you will need to shoe them out and plug their access hole (probably with a chicken wire patch). 

I tell everyone I know: if you call someone up for a job that costs less than a couple hundred bucks in materials and isn't some crazy oddball thing - patching damaged drywall from a leak is not an oddball thing; fixing a partially collapsed porch might be - and the guy can't give you a ballpark figure over the phone and says they have to come "see the job", they're going to try to milk you for every dime on the planet - because truly busy contractors that do lots of work know roundabout how long various jobs take, how much they charge for their labor, and about what the materials cost.

Looking for some paint/drywall patching and installing new flooring. 

Does the whole roof need replaced or is it just a patch job?

I'd only buy subject to today knowing what I know and having lived through rough patches where I was praying for appreciation and that the seller would keep paying the mortgage. 

For example, do you find patch repairs to be more costly in the long run?

For example, do you find patch repairs to be more costly in the long run?