Depreciation helps reduce the taxable rental profit, potentially bringing it to zero or even creating a loss, which can carry forward to offset future rental income or other capital gains.For high wage earners, other tax strategies could include leveraging cost segregation studies to accelerate depreciation on rental properties through bonus depreciation, taking advantage of tax-deferred exchanges (like a 1031 exchange), or maximizing deductions related to property expenses (mortgage interest, property taxes, insurance, repairs, etc.).

If equity, do you structure with a pref and carry, or straight split?  

Should I write up an ammendment to the contract stating in the case the insurance claim isn’t approved and carried out, that I can get X amount in seller credits?

Such properties tend to carry less risk and can help facilitate scaling up for future investments.

Structure as a commercial lease, 5+ years, annual rent escalations, requirement to carry liability insurance (name you as additional insured), etc.

I do my best to honor both, and God has blessed me more than I deserve; including having a portfolio of rental properties, which is a story in itself that came about because someone offered me a house on an owner-carry contract because he knew I could never afford to buy my own while living overseas.  

As with any type of investment, investors should list the estimated costs to calculate their potential profit.Costs to consider on fix-and-flipsRepairs (always be conservative)Carrying costs (interest, points)Monthly costs (utilities, HOAs, insurance, taxes)Buying costs (back taxes, cash for keys, liens, code violations)Selling costs (commissions, closing costs, transfer fees, title insurance)Unexpected costs (add $5,000 to be safe)These are the basic costs investors should consider.

However, once I signed an agreement, they sent me an even longer punch list, approaching $2K for a while bunch of silly things, none of which would deter tenants (proven once I switched away from RL) and all of them carrying ridiculous surcharge prices way higher that one may see even in most expensive coastal markets like CA and NYC.

Our lease requires the tenant to carry renter's insurance with a minimum of $300,000 liability coverage naming us as additional insureds, as well as covering their personal property.

This cost is typically 0.5% to 1% of the loan amount.Title search and title insurance: The lender carries out checks to ensure no issues with the property’s title, like a tax lien.