What do you suggest as an alternative -- cold calling? 

Alternatively you could consider investing passively.

to get an idea of how deals are found and how different types of deals are structured and financed.In my day job, I'm a Business Systems Analyst, so numbers, processes, and working with data come naturally to me. 

You would be surprised how many people have funds for all different types of real estate and alternative investment strategies. 

All, of course, being educational in nature and not legal advice! 

For tax purposes, you probably want the property to be treated as a "for profit" rental if possible, because the other alternative is that it's a "hobby", and you can't write off any losses.One of the tests is that the rent has to be "reasonable" - it can be somewhat below market, but it can't be pennies on the dollar low.

If the tenant is moving in more than halfway thru the month then I require prorated first months rent, second months rent and deposit...i am looking into deposit alternatives for my new 20 unit acquisition so this may change how I handle deposits . 

I have been looking for a step up voltage converter as an alternative option, but that doesn't seem realistic for an appliance. 

Whether something is by the job or by the hour would depend on the nature of the repair.

Then, after doing some math, I figured out that many of these properties would be extremely difficult to maintain a steady cashflow from and the looming risk of natural disaster was, well, looming.