Lots of depreciation you will pay no tax maybe even shield some W2 income.B.  8k maybe 10k if you pick the right guy to lend your money to in interest income you will be paying much higher tax rate on this income FYI no depreciation expense. 

Going to try out PayRange, the Shine Pay is slightly more expensive and the one quote about the 20 units appears to be from shinepay as it is the only qoute they ever made... not sure which is better but both look like good options

LLC) will impact liability, tax deductions, and reporting requirements.Rental income is taxed as passive income, and losses—such as depreciation and property expenses—can offset rental income but may be limited if your income exceeds certain thresholds.

It’s not always pleasant but you have your expenses on the property too, right? 

I'd focus on deciding what you want to do (flip-high risk, but potentially high return...or large loss; short term rental-more work, but higher return than long term rental; long term rental-less work than the other two, but lower return).Once you've decided which you want to do, then focus on getting the best house to meet your goal. 

Run the calculations on the expense of doing a refi at a slightly reduced rate vs. keeping the current loan for whatever period of time you think you will hold this house.

Quote from @Erick Pena: A "good" rental property is one that covers all expenses (mortgage, taxes, insurance, maintenance, property management fees, and any other costs) and still leave a surplus (commonly referred to as cash flow).Calculate cash flow as: Cash Flow = Rental Income − Operating Expenses − DebtThere's much more to it, but that's the basic idea.

Your cousin should contact the lender to discuss his options.If he rents it out, he must report rental income and expenses (e.g., mortgage interest, taxes, repairs, depreciation) on Schedule E starting when the property is placed in service.

You can surely buy cheaper properties and obtain the same debt pay-down, but now you've got 5x the head-ache, so right asset class is more about efficiency when it comes to debt pay-down.Tax shielding is similar concept in that more expensive properties directionally give you more building basis to depreciate, which means less net income to tax.

For a single property, a strong umbrella insurance policy may offer sufficient protection at a lower cost.