8th picture- yep definately remove the table- open the shades, remove that clear glass thing over the dishwasher.

Home prices at the moment are a shade above my price range, but I'd love to think of creative ideas, loan packages, etc that might be able to get me into one of those homes.

Just for further info, my current mortgage with taxes, insurance, and PMI is a shade over $1600/mo.

Is lighter or darker colors better for rentals ?

Kristine Marie Poe - Check out the doors: http://1drv.ms/1P6XF2e - painting them a darker blue made them look fantastic.

My advice is that running an LLC seems like a lot until you get your system developed and find an efficient method to accomplish the tasks.Notice: I am a little bit shade tree lawyer. 

Hey @Stephen Darker I'm in the same boat here in Calgary, although it's actually pretty good compared to Vancouver where I've also been looking.  

However, it's in the Phoenix area, and the backyard is totally shaded. 

There were some old dog pee stains throughout the house from the previous owner, so we went with a darker stain than before in order try to mask them a little bit.Here are some looks at the work before and after:Living room before-After-Before, hallway:End of Hallway Before, there was an opening under the carpet that was an access to the crawlspace.

Seeing the in vs out of state as a black-or-white argument, there are definitely shades of gray like buying in-state but within driving distance to where you live.