As far as tenants, while we self-manage, we had our realtor find us tenants, and we'd pay her half or all of a months rent.

I've got two offers out and one more before tomorrow =) One or all will be my first purchase.

Question: Is AirBnb a noun, verb, adjective, or all three?   

Water intrusion in crawl spaces and basements is very common but fortunately, in most cases easily remedied. 99% of water intrusion is due to inadequate drainage to to the condition of or lack of gutters and downspout and improper soil grading around the foundation.

Have the seller hold some or all of the note to get into the property and chances are the other issues will not factor in.

One of the highest property taxes in the country, Try KC or Al - very low property taxes :)

You may not have as much luck with buying from investors on a competitive product (duplexes), but if its been sitting awhile or needs a lot of work, negotiate some or all of your closing costs into your offer.

I usually see 10% of rents plus either half or all of the first month's rent on new leases.

The difference is that they are conventional lending products and do not follow a FHA appraisal is sometimes or all of the of the time scrutinized.

And check with their prior landlord (NOT current) to get their input regarding whether or not they would rent to the tenant again.You might want to look into buying a duplex and live in half of it when you are in town, and rent out the other half year round, letting them make or portion (or all) of your mortgage payment :)