At no point do you really actually keep the cash if you see this cycle, you keep some earmarked for protection.  

Do not earmark any portion of the SD for “pet deposit”!

If you factor an 8% turnover rate as the cost of doing business in the SFR world, then you can afford to give your premium tenants a small break to help ensure they stick around. 8% on a 1k/month rental is 80/month that is being earmarked as being a vacancy expense.

But the fact of the matter is, all else being equal: more equity in the deal, regardless of what it is earmarked for, is safer.  

. $400k of the $1.785m we raised was specifically earmarked for the rehab.

Earmark the money for each bill plus savings until your paycheck goes down to zero.

For instance, my top four earmarked deals (one of which I already own) near Everett, WA, total 84 acres, will cost $800k to acquire and will generate 815 TDR Receiving credits worth, conservatively, $8.9 million. 

But, after that, know when it's time to harvest and use some of that wealth, and know what kind of investor you are and portfolio you need to actually achieve the lifestyle you set out to create in the first place - one likely where working is optional and you feel you have earmarked dollars being generated and usable from your portfolio to spend on your lifestyle..

OrlandoOrlando’s population growth has more than doubled the U.S. average for each of the past 10 years and continues to earmark Orlando as one of the fastest growing markets in the U.S.

If lender agrees to seller credit they might require money to be held in a reserve account earmarked for that purpose only.When a buyer wants to buy a retail center tenants can say all kinds of stuff to see what concessions they can get out of the new landlord.