And, yes, you need to "harden" the rentals (if you can) and set aside higher reserves.

@Steven ZahanovI'll drive as far as needed, if the returns are there.Make sure the house is hardened before a tenant moves in and screen well!

If you do a search on "hardening rentals", you should find quite a few threads on this topic!

Sticking to hardened criteria has its purposes and unless you're desperate to get someone into the property you'll probably find a tenant that meets your criteria with some patience.

Hi all,After playing with the idea of real estate investing for years, my wife and I are finally in the process of hardening real plans to make this a part of our future.

It takes a long time to fully cure and harden, like a month, but once that time period is over it’s a very solid paint, almost like a lacquer.

I have a wholesaling Evernote, one on hardening my rentals, one on long term strategies, creative strategies, etc.  

Is there not a hardening solution for the fence?

. :-)Prevention requires, hardening the target. 

Hi, @Zachery Angus harden, welcome to the community, and thank you for your service.I am excited to see your journey in real estate.Since you are a veteran, you have a great tool at your disposal, the VA loan.You can buy a primary and live in it then after a year or two, you can rent it out and use your remaining entitlement to purchase another home.If you do not have enough entitlement, you can refinance into a conventional and free up your entitlement.Hope this helps!