Be hopeful, but guard with wisdom.  

Any big ticket items pop up that caught you off guard?

Thanks for stopping by my question. I would like to know how PMs, CMs, and developers hire all the construction labors who are needed for projects. I believe they hire from independent private agency. If so, what do y...

@Jay Hinrichs is absolutely right.I am a newbie and a lowly service plumber, but once upon a time I worked in sales, and I would have to say that my sales training has definitely helped when dealing with owners.Also I would have to say the owner seems on guard.

Re other comments above, I too have found that when I start to think of signing a lease as helping someone out my guard goes down and subsequently my troubles rise.

And tenants will probably be on guard with behavior even more with the landlord living in the building. 

I'm currently working full-time in the military (National Guard) as an Operations Officer and loving it.

As someone with very little experience, I'm curious to what was the thing that caught you off guard about you journey into real estate investing.

I think you end up subsidizing the amenities for your tenants...pools, guards, gates, fitness center, etc.Way too many places I see around DFW have a ton of deferred maintenance....so make sure to check that out.....you know who gets to pay for that at some point....YOU.Rents are probably coming up....so you could get lucky. 

What also caught me off guard is you being more concerned about his mail preferences than his recent eviction which would have been a hard pass for most on here.