We have paid the monthly water bill since then, but want to transition to having the tenants pay their own water usage using the RUBS/water allocations since each duplex is on a single shared water meter. 

The amount they allocate towards utilities will be dependent on the type of rental (apartment, single family house, etc), and bedroom size.

My plan is to allocate half of this amount to real estate investments, with an emphasis on direct property ownership.

@Peter Pope - If the land vs building allocation on your property tax statement doesn't seem accurate make sure your accountant seeks other ways to optimize this. 

What are all your thoughts on just parking money in allocation for long term hold like a Detroit, Las Vegas, Orlando, Jacksonville, Atlanta, Indianapolis, St Louis, Memphis, or Houston type of metro?

Even with high allocation for vacancies and rehab.

I couldn't believe I read this.I was in the magazine section of Walmart while my wife was looking for craft materials for her kindergarten students.I was drawn to "The Essential Retirement Guide" (from Centennial Media in 2022) where the cover article wrote about several financial planning tenants.It addressed how to estimate how much income you'd need in retirement, how much money you'd need to reliably provide that income, how to structure your portfolio to balance out risks, etc.The paragraph before the final summary read as follows (I took a picture and think of it often):"Other assets in investor portfolios can also influence asset allocation.

If it is, see the Table 1 Instructions for line 13 for an explanation of how to allocate the excess interest.

  $50K negative value consumes years of cash flow (especially if properly allocating for all expenses and not using cash flow = rent - PITI that some newbies use) to get to an even position. 

It all comes down to how much money, time and resources are you willing to invest and allocate to your investment properties.