If not, a bad solenoid/pump would be my next bet.

There's probably more to it than that, but that's my bet anyway.If you are interested in rentals in Portland, maybe a get in touch with a realtor and get an idea of what to expect for cap rates, etc. there and maybe give them some of your criteria so they can be on the lookout for properties you might be interested in.

You helped me win a bet.

Your best bet get a good insurance policy.Joe Gore

Your best bet is to find a deal where the total acquisition costs (including any deferred maintenance) are an amount that will equate to a positive cash flow return.

I bet your civil engineering background might come in handy in RE investing.

Your best bet is to try to get all the financial information you can get evaluate the actual numbers (plus come up with a pro-forma of your own), and make an offer based on the cap-rate of the actual numbers.

Your best bet might be to see the house and make the offer there, so you can negotiate properly (without highlighting TOO much the deficiencies of the property) with the owner.

I would keep them though cause you're going to have another furnace go up and it's good to have them on hand to loan out.I'm betting its something simple to fix like a thermocouple or an igniter.

I'll bet no other landlord has done that for them before.