We offered tenant the opportunity to try to clean the carpet but they concurred that it had been destroyed in a year.

Clean up your personal finances.

About 80% of my tenants keep good clean homes and are happy to help us with showings and finding new tenants.

Clean up your personal finances.

This term is generally for the work of cleaning and painting, sometimes sanding out the floors and buying appliances.

If I weren’t comfortable with that (which I would be but it seems you are not) I’d sell these properties and 1031 into a 10 or 20 unit that I care less about and rent someone else’s fancy home on the Cape and let them change the sheets and clean the tubs.

Think of it from a maintenance perspective, cleaning, fixing, maintaining - one roof, one building, one plumbing/electric/water system versus multiple.

3) what are the steps I take to a clean slate?

Way to hard to clean food and dust off of. example:https://www.homedepot.com/p/MSI-Alaska-Gray-Splitface-12-in-x-12-in-x-10mm-Marble-Mesh-Mounted-Mosaic-Tile-ALGRY-SFIL10MM/206741880Too busyhttps://www.homedepot.com/p/MSI-Magica-12-in-x-12-in-x-6mm-Glass-and-Stone-Mesh-Mounted-Mosaic-Tile-SGLS-MAG6MM/206741857Very uniform and neutral, adds design fare.https://www.homedepot.com/p/MSI-Honeycomb-Hexagon-12-in-x-12-in-x-10mm-Natural-Marble-Mesh-Mounted-Mosaic-Floor-and-Wall-Tile-HONCOM-2HEX/205307895

This lot has another service for all utilities it just needs to be cleaned up....