Well it would seem then if you buy in a really suspect area to get a higher return then go ahead and build in a security cost as part of the rehab.When I sell vacant apartment buildings the buyers put in the cost of having 24 hour security and a fence around the property during rehab.http://www.vpspecialists.com/property-lifecycle/It's cheaper and causes less damage and saves time over taking a chance the property will get broken into.Thieves like to slither around so if you have good outside lighting that will help as well.

My PM is generally good, and very responsive, but I always believe there are more maintenance items on every turnover than their really need to be, and they cost a bit more than they should, but not being on-site, I have no way to verify it. 

By splitting these 2 components out, it allows me to make a realistic estimate of how much the job will truly cost.

If I can do it with some one time fees (and I think I can) and it doesn’t cost a lot to maintain each year I would eventually like to move my rentals into some sort of entity to get my name out of the public record.I value my privacy and would like to eventually be anonymous with regards to what and how much real estate I own

Unfortunately it usually requires CYA measures which cost a lot of money.My 2 cents, hopefully helpful.

Besides the "inspection" is not just for the property, down here the inspection period gives you time to inspect other things, such as a condo association governing documents which again can cost a few hundred dollars to purchase and days to read through to see if there may be problems.

Most look at the cost as a fee however I also look at the cost as a loss of opportunity.

My ultimate goal would be to acquire enough wealth to be able to move down to Costa Rica and run a B&B without having to worry too much about cash flow.

And the money third is independant of their money cost.

The 10-week 2.5 hrs/wk course cost a whooping 700 bucks and was totally worth the moneyMy 2cD