I take care of the whole project from initial inquiry, estimate, demo and tile install.

In Riverside you cannot estimate or allocate usage based on square footage or number of occupants on gas or electric, but you can for the water.

Then when you add in realtor fees, etc, if we sold I estimate it to be around a $35k-$50k loss.

We have contractors who can get us estimates for inspection items and we use that to negotiate.A couple more pieces of advice I would like to leave you with:- Make sure your Agent is knowledgeable about rental properties and what it takes to get them rent ready.  

The mortgage will be for approximately 900k at 4.25% and in my name.

It depends on the type of stain but it may be worth getting an estimate to see if it could work in your situation. 

@Ryan BiankowskiIn my opinion, if you have no experience flipping houses, no experience dealing with contractors and this is your first deal, $10K is nothing.Sorry to burst your bubble.An unscrupulous contractor will burn through your $10K in one day..... literally and you may never see him again.Assuming you have no experience, I would advise you as a starting point to slow down, sit yourself down, and buy J Scott's books for $49.00........and save yourself $9,951.00.Make sure you read them through thoroughly at least once, if not twice before making your first move.There are other good books out there, maybe a good local mentor that you can learn the ropes from and even some good "guru's" that you can learn from despite all the guru bashing on BP but I would definitely start with J's books.Said books are:The Book on Flipping HousesThe Book on Estimating Rehab Costs

It is a four bedroom, two bathroom, split level house needing approximately $20-30k of repairs.The purchase price is $177,500. 

According to market comps from the area all together the homes' value total approximately $600k minus 80k left on that 4th property's mortgage. 

As you mentioned, you can depreciate the improvement value over 27.5 years for residential property.So, to calculate the depreciation recapture after 5 years, you can use the following formula:Depreciation Recapture = (Original Improvement Value / Useful Life) x Accumulated Depreciation x Time HeldIn your example, it would be:Depreciation Recapture = ($200,000 / 27.5) x (5 years) = $36,364.36So, after 5 years, your accumulated depreciation is approximately $36,364.36.Now, when you sell the house for $400,000, the profit you'll have to consider for tax purposes would be:Profit = Selling Price - Adjusted BasisThe adjusted basis is the original purchase price minus the accumulated depreciation.