Follow Baron Rothschild's basic advise in all your investments: " When there is blood in the streets, then buy."

[Unfortunately, living in SF where investing in real estate is too rich for my blood - I'm an out of state investor in Atlanta].I have to give them 30 days notice to drop them according to my agreement (which I could start today for end of November) -- but then the property would still remain vacant and being an out of state investor - I'd have to find another PM to take over.  

I do not even drink alcohol.

The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."

Can you have a friend cosign, or does it have to be a blood relative?

Rarely if ever do we get a call throughout the year from them.However, we had one highly qualified tenant who happened to be an alcoholic.

A Tax Audit is not fun, and even if you have to pay a small penalty, it will bring the blood pressure up.  

If I were to create a graph or chart that shows out of 10 possible candidates to hire, and show the amount that have a drug or alcohol problem, you would be shocked.

The nephew (sole blood relative) has never lived in the house.

Typically landlords would describe emergency repair requests along the line of involving "fire, flood or blood" (if this helps).One would assume that a tenant with a lousy credit score, two pitbulls and a yearly income that places her on poverty status would be grateful any landlord would rent to her.