Long parts of the winter are dry with temeratures in the 40s and 30s, with occasional 20s. 

For me the drive occasionally is not too much of a problem, beyond just typical scheduling issues for a busy person.That said, you should expect to be traveling back and forth more at first, and more whenever you have a vacancy. 

Usually too expensive to work on average rental properties.Type 3 (Average Quality, Average Price)May build an occasional garage or addition, typically focused on remodeling and maintenance work.No advertising, the contractor is the sales/bid staff, no design services, office support is typically wife/girlfriend/mother.Low overhead leads to markups of only 10%+.Bids: Difficult to get a professional-looking bid from them because they would rather be making money working, instead of spending their time doing bids for free.Comment: Contractors that are perfect for medium/low-end flips & rental properties.

We're looking for people who we know we can trust will take of the customers we refer and in return run the occasional comp on properties if we need it.

If you work for a mortgage broker you will usually have to find your own clients but occasionally you can work under another MLO or mortgage broker and they will provide you leads in exchange for a cut of the commission.

I use agents occasionally even though I am licensed.

For me, I try to do regular 1-3% increases knowing that sometimes that is slower than market rent increase and occasionally its faster than market rent but that since I aim a little under market I am always a little under market rent and almost keep pace in the long run.

Your best bets will be the newer GC who's worked for someone else and is now going out on his own, or maybe the Mexican crew whose English is too rough to allow them to score the best homeowner jobs, or the semi-retired guy who only wants to work occasionally.

I'm sure there is the occasional manufacturing glitch.

At the same time, with a lease option deal, I view the seller as a “business partner” since I’ll be making monthly payments to him, reimbursing property taxes, and in occasional contact for ten years.