I don't think regular snow classifies as "an extreme weather" condition.

And I meant Facebook Marketplace, they have a classifieds like section now that you can list rentals, sell mobile homes, etc. 

Yes, with a W2 job, it's next to impossible.But I'm wondering how someone who doesn't get a W2 income, can be classified as a RE professional if the property is out of sate and is managed by a local property manager?

My spouse could be an employee (form W-2), a parter (form 1065), or we could classify it as a "qualified joint venture" where we file two separate Schedule C's for the same business.  

Income from investment activities, such as rental income from real estate, is not business income, it is classified as investment income (rents and royalties), and therefore sheltering that income via a 401k is not possible.  

@Anna Watkins @Steven Hamilton IIThere is case law out there to support a long-term hold being classified as a flip if it is substantially improved prior to re-sale.I'd want to understand how much of your time will be dedicated to this reno, how much income it generate compared to all of your other sources of income, and how many other flips you have done or will do in the future.If it's a one off reno, then you'll most likely be fine.

Hi, I wanted to know how you guys generally calculate the estimated repairs of a house that you are looking at, or if you browsing on classifieds and stumble across a house that has potential, how do you calculate the repairs? 

Sure, you can classify yourself as a real estate professional or setup a property management component and pay yourself a salary that could convert that passive income to earned income, but it generally does not make sound financial sense to do so.The gig work could potentially support a Solo 401k.  

2) We want all of this classified as passive income (and will for instance have a property manager), so I believe would want this classified as an LLC, with the investors listed as the owners.  

However, since both units are rented this would be classified as an investment property in which case your rate will probably be 4.00% to 4.250% on a 30yr fixed depending on FICO credit score.The maximum loan to value for a cash-out transaction (investment property, duplex) is 70%.Based on the information you've provided it doesn't appear the value is high enough for the property to be eligible for a cash-out transaction but you can still remove PMI.If you want to send me a PM I can run a complete analysis to see if removing the PMI will offset the slightly higher interest rate.I'm also licensed in CA so if you're looking to purchase a property I can help with that transaction as well.