I have reoccurring income month in and month out.

With doing that, you have a reoccurring fee of $2-300 per year.  

I went with no (I paid $99 for him to clear the pipe) and haven't had any issues since (I think the clog came when some other guys did some work prior using high pressure water to unclog the washing machine drain pipe as well as the first floor kitchen sink drain which they said was full of years of sludge but I digress).If this is a reoccurring issue I would find a roto-rooter guy who can get video of where the clog is coming from and have him document the location of the clog to show which unit the clog is coming from.

.- Once you sell the stock, that’s it vs reoccurring revenue from a rental property. 

But the situation is a reoccurring one.

The next thing is if you close on three properties you will pay three times the portion of closing costs that are non-reoccurring.  

$10k would be a nice reserve, however, if you buy the right property, and account for reoccurring cost in your rent, their shouldn’t be any surprises that would require that size reserve .

But since there are roots in the pipe , you will have a reoccuring problem even if you jet rod it . 

I think you are in a good spot though and would completely understand wanting to take the "safest" route of being free and clear of payments when you have other reoccurring life expenses hitting you every month.

So how well are those houses well cared for and what type of crime and drug issues are reoccurring?