However, she claims she can’t afford the electric bill and refuses to keep the heater on continuously.

Quote from @Bill B.: Because the cost of roofs, ac units, water heaters and so on don’t care if you collect $600/mo in rent or $3,000/mo.  

Ask local materials distributors which contractors pay their billing on time, and who order materials consistently.Go to some local REI meetups and ask for referrals.Look at local jobsite and take note of truck signage.Of course verify their licensing, here's a link https://lni.wa.gov/licensing-permits/contractors/hiring-a-co...

Put the capital in a low-risk instrument (CD, t-bill) that will preserve as much capital as possible even while making your mandatory (5%?)

I don't like to be any higher than about 70% all in, because there's no room for error otherwise.

The catch with the estimate is you may be wildly off since it's a new home and you don't really know what those bills will be until you've lived there a year (seasonal variability). 

buy a mult with 3% down and live in 1 unit and have the other 1 or 2 units pay the bills. rinse and repeat. get wealthy and be extra generous.

I'm a member of one local STR page that vets owners by requiring they see a utility bill with the address and the owner's name.

The processor keeps making mistakes with the wire with spelling errors etc and now they say the two software systems Bank and investment company cannot integrate.  

They can take care of a lot of the monotonous tasks, and even do things like send leases, screen tenants, add rent charges, pay utility bills, the list goes on.