In the past, I have employed them through recommendation from my acquaintance or neighbors or just through yelp but the current tenant is a little bit "sensitive" (paying rent timely and not trashing the place so no big deal so far) and has repelled many of the repairmen that I have used in the past as "unprofessional" (they can definitely get the job done/fix the problem but the tenant will dispute with them for e.g. being late, not good at communication, or "cutting corners").

Maybe it was in the past. I

These are what I have purchased in the past.  I

I'm not sure how practical it would be for a yard but I have used moth balls in the past.  I

I am in tune with doing inspections, something learned from my agent in the past. I

There are some great books on this matter, check out the craftsmen blog, and a book called 'living in the past'. I

@Paul Stern From my experience as well, using an inspector usually ends up saving $, because then you can use the inspection report as a negotiation tool, and you can go back to the REO, and state, "You didn't realize it needed (Fill in blank)", and ask for a concession amount as you have done in the past.   I

This is what I've heard in the past. I

After reading a lot of posts in BP, I started venturing down the path of portfolio.Instead of one property as I purchased in the past, I am looking at duplexes in addition to a SFR.

Being that I had flipped houses in the past, I looked back into real estate and realized I could make extra income in a buy and hold strategy.