Unfortunately many landlords are grateful for a tenant who pays on time and don't want to rock the boat by imposing yearly increases.

I would rather keep a good tenant happy , which in turns keeps the investor happy, and things run efficiently and without a lot of unnecessary work.  

I was almost always able to find another tenant fairly quickly (0-1 month, being close to a university), but because of that hassle, I added in a clause that imposed a lease transfer fee if they found someone to take over their lease.

Creating unnecessary tension at this point would only make things worse for you.

The water company will then cut off his/her service, and if left unpaid, depending on the jurisdiction, down here where I am they will then impose a lien on the property. regardless who's name is on the account.For this reason I would suggest getting with the tenant and work something out where the burden can be split.It's not your fault because you don't live there, can't be there to notice anything unusual, like noise behind the walls with water moving when no one is using water.It's not your tenant's fault because they are not "in tune" with home maintenance. 

The landing carpet as well as a new stove and fridge strike me as potentially unnecessary projects. 

And immediately cut off your unnecessary expenses!

Maybe you could advertise in a way that allows people to contact you when they want to, rather than impose yourself via their mail and telephone. 

I could go down to 30", and gain some additional cabinet space (and save money on the fridge) or I could go up to 36" and have the fridge get just about up to where that slider opening is (this would be open box and likely cheaper actually, but I'm not sure if it would seem too imposing?)

But, I think sometimes these things can be over-thought and just give attorneys unnecessary business.