That is one of the reasons we have set in place notifications for any estimate of repairs exceeding $500 of which these repairs were 10 times that amount in total.

Care for yard, repairs, and hot tub. 

This could make the sale more appealing by solving a logistical challenge for the landlord.Things to Keep in MindUnderwrite Conservatively: Make sure you account for all costs, including property taxes, maintenance, and potential repairs.

I'm totally good with some sweat equity but I'm not in a position to do Roof, siding, structural repairs and such.

All this to say your repair partner is going to be crucial to your success. 

Since the price of a multi unit is double or sometimes 3x the price of a single family home, would it be smart to start off with a SFH and scale up from there or just make the leap into a duplex that I can force some appreciation with minor repairs.

Hi Zoe in Milwaukee, Wisconsin-You have $25,000 to invest and you would like to scale your portfolio efficiently and wonder what the best approach would be to do that.First off, congratulations on starting your investing journey and having $25,000 to invest.If you could find something near you with equity when you buy it, then house hacking will get you into a property with the lowest amount down--make sure to leave room for reserves and repairs in your budgeting and then refinance as soon as you can to pull money out to buy the next house the same way and keep the first and so on.If that is not possible near you because of prices or other factors, then I would look at buying a BRRRR in a market like Lansing, MI.

Living in one unit and renting out the others allows you to deduct 75% of expenses like mortgage interest, property taxes, insurance, and shared repairs as rental expenses, while the remaining 25% applies to personal use.

There are still a ton of roofs with blue tarps needing repair/replacement and some debris sitting curbside.  

If the receipt says what it cost to do the repairs, that amount should be reimbursed.