Wait till the flooring and paint is on the walls, and only punch list items are left. I

I am not a property manager, but heres my experience.1. you can't choose a renter who is going to stay for a while, I have done in the past where if a renter gives me a notice and I really liked them as tenants, I've discounted the rent $25-$50 depending on the area to encourage them to stay, market rent and the time they're leaving (its easier to find tenants in the summer than during the school year where I am at), some have stayed, some still left.  I

The behavioral people call it 'Loss Aversion' and we often find ourselves paddling down that big river in Egypt because if we don't sell out of that bad investment we can delude ourselves (and hopefully our friends) into thinking we haven't lost money... but it's already gone and all that's left is the crying.

As soon as she left I remembered she said she had a cat…

I said, have them come out and try everything and if they tell me the only possibility left is the wiring in the wall, then we'll deal with that.My first thought was, did she pay the bill?  

We had a new ac unit installed the day before I left. I

For example, in my state, landlords can not charge for water use in a multiple family building, but in a single family, you can have the tenant pay.Same with the maintenance like cutting grass or cleaning gutters...if its allowable (by law) and its in the lease, then you are responsible to do it, so if its in the contract, you could on the hook for the leak and rats.The extra month after you left is not chargeable. 

She seemed to agree with me but after I left, I got the accident recorded on camera.I did served her with a notice and got my maintenance guy to fix it.

If they've only got 4 months left I may ride it out.

The repair man made a quick fix and left, and I locked the place up and left.  I