The second is Time, some investments need some work and you can ether pay someone else to do it or spend the time to do it yourself, the more time you spend the money you have to dish-out.

Appraisers usually don't care about dirty dishes, clothes scattered about or if they just ran the sweeper that day (but they do care about the condition of the carpet of course).Appraisers tend to be more conservative if they don't see the inside...but if the interior shows leaking roofs, damaged walls, out of date fixtures, incorrect outlets, flooring in disrepair, etc....then a Drive By may be best if your Lender approves it.Your lender may also have a reduced LTV based on the Appraisal Type, so make sure that they are not only OK with a drive by, but what "hits" will you be taking on the %LTV, Rate, etc. if any.To answer your questions though, Full Appraisals usually create higher valuations if your property is in good condition than Drive By.

Only question..... what's with that satellite dish being so low on the side of the garage?

Most brokers dish out the good stuff to their known investors before they ever hit market.

So the amenities she is given is a parking spot, washer/dryer access in our basement and of course her own apartment with dish washer (not common from what I've seen).

We are planning to install a utility room, to house the washer (currently where the dish washer should go) and dryer (currently in the third bedroom).  

There are also a lot of satellite towns to Austin that have better cash flow out the gate and good appreciation potential in future years. 

I worked for 4 years in a restaurant washing dishes and had 18k saved up. 

I can't wait to get on the ground, and translate my plan-view knowledge of the area (from hours poring over maps/satellite photos) into a 3-D perspective. 8)

It also needs about $7K to make it rent ready, and I don't think they want to dish it out.