A zoning board meeting and vote is required for a variance approval and is usually rejected due to local political opposition.Also, there might be problems with files from 1915 and it took me 3 visits before they were able to locate the files and see the original plans.

Moot point then.But in response to your original question, no, I would not even consider climate in my choices for where to buy rentals or investment properties.

For sale by owner transactions were originally created when grandma is selling her home to grandson.

Original plan was to fix up, rent, get some tax savings, and refi.

Check the demand for single-family homes in the area and look at recent sales to see how similar properties are performing.

The software allows me to generate custom reports on my rental income, expenses, and overall performance.

I can only see the benefit of forming a self performing property management company if you believe you can be more effective on cost and service than the local 3rd property operators and even cost can be tricky to calculate because most focus on the management fee that's charged rather than the cost to put out fires when they do arise.

@Jason Kahan To perform a 1031 exchange, the ownership structure is crucial.

If you're a 5% owner for only part of the tax year, then only the services performed during that period count toward qualifying.Also, it's important to note that the Tax Court has held that merely being on calls doesn't meet the 750-hour requirement.

Since you are from WA, I am wondering if you know how that market perform.