Overall, this project was a much smaller rehab than we are used to but in a little over a week we completed the following:- pressure washed the outside of the entire property- repaired and replaced damaged sections of gutters- replaced thermostat- re-wired furnace - painted exterior doors and shutters- replaced carpet in the living areas (living room, dining room, kitchen) with Allure vinyl plank flooring- steam cleaned carpet in all three bedrooms- replaced old vinyl floors in both bathrooms with ceramic tiles- repaired several areas of the walls with large holes- painted the entire house realist beige (thanks JScott)- Resurfaced the kitchen cabinets and repainted- purchased and installed all new appliances (dishwasher, stove, fridge, microwave)- replaced all switch plate and outlet covers - cleaned the house front to back and top to bottomDuring this time we had our lease agreement reviewed by our attorney and were getting other administrative and operating processes finalized to be able to rent the property.

Your $250 incentive (or whatever amount) would be better spent on an improvement that stays and helps with their utility bills, like a programmable thermostat or something.

One guy broke a thermostat.

Is there a programmable thermostat?

I believe the thermostat for said furnace is in the lower unit, meaning they control the heat.

An electric baseboard heater can be hardwired in with its own thermostat.

The back yard was super overgrown as well with 2’ tall grass/weeds and trees hanging over and pulling down sections of fence.On the inside the house needed new flooring throughout, paint throughout, new thermostat, some new outlets and switches, several new doors including front/back.

I wouldn't trust the tenants to follow any maintinance schedule.For your issue depending on the thermostat you have they have settings that allow you to adjust the difference in temps because sometimes the temps numbers are off.

I just paid $170 to replace the thermostat on a 8 year old water heater.

The furnace is gas, and the thermostat control is on the lower floor.