Keep in mind the following facts: - These are "hardened" rental units that are all brick with all new roofs, hard floors, HVACs, plumbing, electrical, appliances, kitchens/baths.

We do this by competing with the section 8 bible minimalist by going slightly above the minimum and taking time to get to know applicants and saying no to a lot of people.Am I an optimist or will I be hardened over time ?

And we harden our properties with vinyl plank flooring or tile, not carpet.  

When I wholesale i like to hit the appeal button because even hardened investors are affected by it even if only slightly.

This is one thing I would do to "harden" my rentals.  

I figured we could do alright with a battle hardened staff and without all of the unnecessary expenses and salaries built up during the boom.Things were running fairy smoothly until the last few months, when my office manager apparently became burnt out and decided not to follow up with clients without letting me know this of course.

You should get yearly leases and have parent co-sign and harden the rentals for the inevitable damages. 

Can't comment on the leasing specifics but I would highly recommend reading the threads on this forum about "hardening your rentals."

If that grease sits in the line it can harden like concrete over time.

Being a Landlord = Being a Hardened individual This is a business.