the kitchen could be updated and painted etc....not sure how the determine the value because after all the value is a huge factor in determining what you will get approved for?

. :) "Maximum Pre-payments While a tenant may have a pet, or some interest such as portrait painting, which may potentially harm the apartment, you are prohibited from the collecting as advance payments more than the first and last month’s rent, one month’s security deposit, and the cost of installing a new lock (M.G.L. c. 186 § 15B).

It hadn't been painted in years, inside or out and was just looking very tired, way beyond its 12 years of life.

What you want to do is what my husband and I have been doing for the past 12 years, we have been doing it this way which is the way it has worked for us:Our first home was a traditional sale FHA the house was outdated it needed a lot of work in kitchen and bathrooms plus carpet, we lived there for a few years mean while we were fixing it little by little with money out of our pockets the home cost us $117k we sold it for $220k, with that money we bought a piece of land (more like a lot) for $35k and built a house on it for $60k sold that one for $120k, we were fortunate to sale the house when price of homes here in AZ were really low we were able to by 2 houses with 120K but they were foreclosures and one needed a lot of work the other one also need some work but not as much so we lived in that one till we finished fixing both up the one that needed a lot of work (ugly one) cost us $40k and we put $20K into it we rent that one out now for $900 per month we are holding it for a few years to avoid paying a lot of taxes, the house has recently been appraised for $136K we have had the house for 2 years.The other house cost us $60K and only had to put $10k into it (we just put new roof, fixed rv gate and painted house inside and out) we sold it about a year ago and sold for $138K, we recently jumped to our next home which we live in it now we got it a year ago for $157K it was a short sale we just painted and fixed the pool and now it has been appraised for $225K.

Ceiling fans an ac unit, a room painted etc.Paul

A few days later over the weekend someone broke into that house and smashed all the drywall, the kitchen, the bathroom and spray painted the walls with the exact same phrases that the illegal dumpers were using while yelling at my workers so it was pretty clear it was the same guys.

If #1 is a brick townhouse or single story style with a shingle roof in good condition (for example) then it might be a better buy than a painted wood, flat tar-roofed bldg with apartments that are over/under. or if one has separately metered everything, and the other doesn't.That sort of stuff can make a big difference that doesn't show up immediately in the math

Its saved me some $ on my rentals, because after I switched to this color i have had to re-paint half as much.

It is a rehab in process, exterior paint scraped, interior, new electrical, new plumbing, new sub floor & drywall hung, no tape..

Since you didn't provide a breakdown on the expense side please remember that stuff happens where you have to paint; call a plumber; replace carpeting; wear and tear inside; insurance; taxes; mortgage interest etc.