No good reason to reduce your cash position and pay higher rates at this point.

What expenses can you reduce usually?

Saying 'no' to pets will drastically reduce your candidate pool, so you might shop for a pet-friendly house (hard floors, securely fenced yard).Even if you're cool with pets, you should meet the specific pets and have a good long talk with the candidate on that animal's temperament and quirks prior to agreeing to lease to them.

You could do a hard money loan if you are getting a deep discount on the property and that will reduce your total out of pocket.

This bill denies equal justice to housing providers by:Forcing landlords to reduce rents by 25% even if a tenant cannot demonstrate a hardship or need.Allowing judges and the court system to set rents and change the rental agreements already in place.Assuming every tenant is facing a hardship related to COVID-19 and must be compensated for this hardship.Protecting nuisance tenants as it does not require tenants to answer an unlawful detainer complaintMandating that rental property owners demonstrate an economic hardship to collect the contracted rent.AB 828 is an unfair attempt to allow the government and the courts to give reduced rent to all tenants even if they have faced no economic hardship, and it provides no safeguards for landlords.As for the taxes, local laws are not state laws and state laws are not feral laws and state to state laws are different.

If you can't turn into a normal rental over this Corona period and the reduced tourism that is going to follow you are in trouble.

She also said that she prayed for the house and now there is no more "activity"That's all I got.My old house makes more noise when temperature changes or if its windy, and if this house is in Ohio (guessing, based on your location) we have had a bunch of crazy temperature swings, wind, and intermittent rain that makes our soil swell up and push on the foundation, then subside.. 

I assume that a %3.5 payment is a great start by going the live-in way, but what are some of the ways that I can look at reducing my closing costs?

Costs: 155k (working on lowering w/ closing costs included)HOA: 265 month (includes external maintenance, tennis and basketball courts, and poolRent: 550 (11x13) and 500 (11x11) according to comps + utilitiesProperty taxes: 1500/yrI have 110k in private student debt, but after putting a down of 17k - I won't have to pay for rent and my commute to work is greatly reduced.

When we offer to allow them to pay either interest only, or half payments, we also tell them that we will extend the note term because if principal is not reduced, and the payments when resumed are not increased, then the number of payments are increased in order to repay the principal.