Contrary to most business lending, the REI industry has a lot of "non-bank" lenders that provide attractive loans that can lower your cost of capital and improve your profit/cash flow. 

It's a great way to showcase the improvements made and helps appraisers not miss stuff.

Denver is very expensive for a new guy who doesn't have loads of capital so a market like Missouri for example is intriguing for far cheaper real estate but then Id either have to move, improve the property remotely or simply buy and hold as a rental for X time. 

This is due to bonus depreciation which allows taxpayers to deduct 40% of qualifying property costs in the first year, in addition to regular depreciation for new construction and improvement.

I file jointly with my wife who's a w2 employee.

I want to improve our asset management side.

The only other option that comes to mind is to make the improvements and try to achieve favorable rental rates to push the story that 2 BR homes rent for a premium because its unique.

Repairs made while the property is your primary residence are not deductible, but improvements can increase your cost basis, reducing future capital gains tax when you sell.

I have done several multiple property 1031 exchanges throughout the state for my clients who are looking to scale and improve their investment portfolio. 

We’ve slowly been improving our homes the more we’ve built and the more feedback we get from our Buyers2021 – Added 8ft doors throughout the home2022 – Added a new elevation with stone in the front of the home2023 – NO carpet in the bedrooms, LVP throughout the home2024 – Added hurricane impact windows & new color options2025 – Adding Ceiling FansGotta be open to feedback and adjust accordinglyThis can be the difference of your home sitting on the market for 4 months vs 1 month