Quote from @Teryl West: I'm a bit leery when prospective tenant tells me they are really clean because some landlords just want to get rid of a problem tenant.  

I would have recommended getting it cleaned out.

I have a cleaning crew in to clean the common areas every other week. 

It is balance sheet heavy but for some reason, most investors in BP are just focused on P&L and they stick with these free accounting platform that doesn't even utilize the Balance Sheet.A lot of the time when I clean up client's books, it's mainly in the balance sheet that needs to be fixed up.

I’ve got a buddy who LLCs each property individually and just names them after the address—keeps it simple and clean for bookkeeping and liability separation.

We have a modest security deposit collected up front along with 1st month's rent and the cleaning fee.

But you can get value out of all of them if you work them right.The reality is, for profit or non-profit, all REIAs have costs to cover just to operate.

Should I advise the tenant to clean the unit and repair any issues now to avoid deductions from their security deposit?

Having one nearby so that you can manage it better means that you will spend more time cleaning and maintaining rather than hiring someone else to do it and thereby get host burnout in a few months time.

I am on the board of the RPA (Rental Property Association of Wisconsin, a non-profit) and typically hear if things like this are an issue from our members or attorneys.