@Jack B.If the popcorn's painted, you're going to have some difficulty getting rid of it, but if you find the right guy, it can be done.

I just don't want to paint myself into a corner.

We are painting a rental.

Primarily I build custom furniture, as far as the home improvement side: general home repair (doors, drywall, paint etc).  

Homes are clearly outdated and need things taken care of like lead paint, new windows, paint, etc. 

I recently looked at a duplex and wanted to get some thoughts on if these items should be factored into the offer price:The water heaters were over 10 years old, both gas furnaces were over 10 years old, the water was not separately metered, the front porch (cement) had some cracks in it, and both units would need some paint and new carpeting. 

I have a feeling I have determined why the company that owned my house before I bought it just painted the basement concrete instead of actually finishing it with drywall...I'm getting first hand experience about why there's so many complaints about Baltimore City.

If I was running another option on this deal, I'd adjust the interest rate to 5.5-6%, put 20% down, include $5-6,000 in initial repair (even if that's just cleaning and painting), reduce the monthly expenses to 8%, include PMI at $100/mo and then see where that lands you.

Also if it is just paint and a little cosmetic stuff unless you got a smoking deal you may not have enough equity to refinance out into a favorable long term conventional loan.  

My advice is fix it up as much as you can with as little money as you can (clean, repair, do yard work, make lipstick improvements, paint but don't paint yourself into another corner haha) and get out of this deal as soon as possible.