They'll typically leave behind mattresses, couches, broken furniture, rotten food, etc.

You typically want to include those utilities because if unpaid they become liens against your property.

Third, the typical person renting a room is not a home buyer candidate. 

It is not typical that you will find SF deal after deal, and if you are actively marketing for distressed sellers many...most...will want cash sales.

Look into connecting with some local investors, they typically have meet-ups often and swap stories and different strategies.

You can use a tool like AirDNA to get estimates of property performance in your specific market and with your typical size and configuration of home.

You typically need a down payment for many things you buy.

While they typically have considerable deferred maintenance, we're getting great terms.

.- Over a 10 year period cashflow will increase as rents increase (rents typically rise faster than property taxes, insurance, etc.)- The property should be appreciating, if purchased in a good location, increasing the owner's equity/wealth.- Rents will be paying the mortgage off, increasing the owner's equity/wealth.- If you hold a rental until death, you can pass it on with a stepped-up cost basis, limiting captial gains if then sold (limited by inheritance tax limitations).Too many newbies on this site trying to replace their day job income via "passive" real estate investing w/o digging deep enough to understand how it really works.

Thank you Nick - unfortunately it is the name of the game in this space that there will be people with bad experiences, typically when the appraised value doesn't come in as what they expect and they lash out at the lender accordingly (anyone in this space obviously understands this occurrence).