-contact local landlords and get their feeling of the interaction (easy, heavy handed, not at all, waiting forever) with the local HA; also for the quality of the available local section 8 tenants- i would look for tenants previously long-term in their former place; then you educate them/train them to your requirementscontinuous success

It's hard for me to imagine a newly renovated condo in the Heights as being a great investment in the current market (again, unless you're getting a special deal), but I could conceive of good opportunities around Journal Square that need some work being good deals.If you run the numbers on cost/expected rent/maintenance/repairs it may be obvious which is a better deal, although I subjectively feel that you'll probably enjoy more appreciation, at least in the shorter term, in Journal Square than in the Heights.Good luck!

Check the termination clause.Those are just a few things to consider as you screen the PM companies.Aloha,Jeff

If the tenant fails to perform, the landlord can terminate the agreement and keep the deposit as damages and move on finding another tenantIf you accept a security deposit and /or execute a lease for a future date and the tenant fails to perform at move in, your only option is to evict as there is a lease in place.

we change locks and check smoke detectors and put new batteries in them. 

If you have real problems with them you can always terminate the month to month, but other than that,  if you are going to live there you will always need to find a way to get along with your tenants.  

Look at it this way – if $825 is their price ceiling, they may/will be renters for a long time and will probably be long term in your property.

I would absolutely not buy long term in an HOA again, but right now the opportunity to turn it into a lot of money is making me asses if the risk is worth it.

And because of that, the Cash on Cash ROI looks fantastic in terminal years.Is it because I'm paying off the loan principal in the last 10 years?

I'll refund $250 in exchange for the keys and her signing lease termination form.