Thankfully I am currently breaking even on the mortgage with both units rented and we just moved into my girlfriend's parents’ lake house rent free.

- The market is in a little bit of a lull right now (buyers market), its a great time to buy, but slower time to sell (my primary business is flipping houses) I can supplement my flipping business by providing project management services/consulting, helping investors find discounted properties, etc. etc.

Own 10 rentals in Columbus Ohio and building another 21 new build single family houses in Florida that will be a clean BRRRR that will be free and clear.

If my stories scare them (and they often do), they should NOT be investing in Detroit.But I'm equally tired of the narrative that these sorts of houses don't work as cash flowing investments.

Unfortunately, it's now going to get more complicated:(There are two types of approaches PMCs use to bill for maintenance:1) In-house ServiceTechs on the payroll, so owners are billed for their time by the hour.While the labor charges above are useful, they don't cover the true costs a PMC incurs, like:- Payroll costs for FICA, Social Security, Medicare, etc. that typically add 25-40% to the hourly rate- Medical insurance costs for the worker- Payroll processing costs to handle all of the above- Liability insurance costs in case worker damages something or injures someone- Workman's Compensation insurance- Costs of vehicles and tools- and more...Typically the management contract will disclose the total hourly rate an owner will be charged.

I recently looked at an existing STR, but either the seller did not track the expenses or they did not want to provide them. 

In future if you are refinancing I would sometimes look to pay a higher purchse price but have seller concessions to bring the price down on paper but not for comp purposes. 

It makes for great customer service and then they put a name to the voice and they think twice about messing up the house. 

We want her to live with us so she's more active and social, but our current house isn't suitable.

Are there any house at that price point that would rent for $1200-1500/ month with 20k worth of updating?"