Thank you for having such a welcoming, open and respectful place for new people to come.~ Paul

So it's good you have a healthy respect for how quickly that could go by.  

Hi Yvette, Kudos to you on being a teacher and molding the next generation (My Mom was a teacher so I know and respect the selfless dedication that is a a part of that profession). 

With all due respect, Jeb, do you know what to ask?

its also about the local market - here in the NY Metro region we have a lot of competition but I suspect there are some markets where HD is the best source, and some things contractors will buy at HD even here - but not wood or millwork or high end tiles etc.my Dad was a cabinetmaker, he got out as it is hard to get someone to pay for the fine work, and for a rental you may not want such fine work anyhow - but if you work with a contractor - there has to be mutual respect and a knowledge of what it costs them, not just what it costs you.

Very knowledgable, respects the clock, and plays in the game a bit himself so gets it.

We had more, but are selling way more than buying in this environment because I respect market cycles....

A good positive letter with an invitation to meet face to face and your contact information, as well as a token gift ($5 gift card to starbucks or something home-y), should leave your tenants with a great opinion of you and will hopefully encourage them to give you and your new units the same respect you'll be giving them. 

In my experience I have found that if you treat your tenants with respect and ensure that all reasonable repairs are completed in diligent fashion people have no reason to go.

Also, there are only 2 units with 2bed, 1.1 bath that sold this year and they sold for 164K and 164,800 respectively.