He also put paint in bath tub which I have to change with new bath tub  as well.

I live here and househack as well - can provide a first hand perspective.

There are two requirements to claim REP status1) 750 Hours2) You spend more time on real estate than other activities such as your W-2 Job or BusinessYou want to work with a tax professional who will be able to advise you on what hours count and what hours do not count.Furthermore, the CPA may have a nice worksheet that you can use to help you document your hours.Best of luck!

Also tweaking your pricing on VRBO and Airbnb so you are active and it pushes you higher in the search results.Tweaking the price that gets pushed to these platforms works as well.

Leather couches are very durable and can just be wiped off.

You can always lower the rent if need be.

It's a breach of the broker's fiduciary duty to his client (the seller) to bring in as many qualified buyers as possible in order to get the best price possible.Private agreements by the NAR will be no defense unless in the listing agreement between seller and broker.

For example in Reno, NV there are many homes with walkout basement areas that can be made into separate studio apartments that will get more rent than just the room in the house.

Feel free to share any thoughts you have here as well. 

Property managers and agents can be really helpful as well as they’ll give you insight into the market and could have some opportunities for you down the road.In the meantime, try researching the areas you're interested in.