you need to know what condition all of the big ticket items are in. 

Food for thought - you'll also want to consider your tax strategy and reported income through the lens of your future plans.

The lender must review and approve the renovations in advance, and must inspect the completion of all items that cost more than $5,000.A borrower may request reimbursement for their payments for the cost of materials or for the cost of properly documented contract labor, but not for the cost of their sweat equity (labor).

Ensuring the tenant vacates at time of settlement is the other important item to negotiate in the event you can negotiate a lengthier settlement period.

MANY items are like that AND more importantly those values might differ WIDELY in different markets!

Think about your SO preparing food for a SuperBowl party.

There are quite a few items that they failed to complete, but within the scope of work he was supposed to replace bedroom windows. 

steps to decide: 1-flush out the cash flows & sales proceeds of both scenarios, discount them based on what % of the return is likely to be realized vs "optimistic"2-find a delta in the cash flow of the risk-adjusted outcomes (pretend these are your most-likely outcomes)3-determine your time investment on the self-managed opportunity4-divide line item 2 by line item 3 and compare against how much income per year / hour your time is roughly worth5-if this figure is less than your desired income, avoid the time commitment investment; and if the figure is more than your income, buy the time commitment if you're wiling to do it.

It is a 4-plex in the Adams Point area of Oakland. 3 minute walk to Whole Foods.

Your depreciation will actually start in the month and year it became "occupied" as a rental, based on the original purchase price, minus land, plus whatever capitalized items you did to prepare the property for rent.