The best way to do this is to renovate a unit or two to the specifications to bring it up to market.  

I was thinking about getting the property, renovating it, and then cashing out 80% of the ARV to get some of the money back.

Despite no additional renovations being necessary, our efficient strategy and swift turnaround led to a same-day sale at $225,000.

Time is money, and delaying a renovation often means lost rental income.

@Jay Fayz for SFR (1-4 family) Classifications are mostly opinion-based.Not aware of anyone tracking eviction rates, except Evictions Lab nonprofit that doesn't like landlords.Here's some info that might helpt:---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

The lessons you learned the hard way in 2008 will be invaluable now, and it’s great that you’re aiming to stay small-scale and within your comfort zone of Sacramento, which gives you an advantage of knowledge in that market.Given your experience, I'd say start by focusing on three key areas to build confidence and minimize risks:Budget Control: Over-renovating was one of the big mistakes you mentioned.

First, estimate what the renovation would cost, how long it would take, and how much extra you could potentially sell the property for once it’s fixed up.

We can buy the house for maybe 125k and he estimates 120k in renovations.

We have purchased a property for flip that's currently under renovation.

Quote from @Robyn Henderson: My family's 3 unit prewar building in Brooklyn recently had plumbing issues and I'm debating renovating each of the bathrooms.