Think of all the things that could go wrong and see if the lease addresses them: unauthorized pets or tenants, early termination, security deposit, lease violations, late rent, eviction, lawn maintenance, parking, etc.5.

Paying down a mortgage is creating artificial cash flow and is not "investing".

Plus a lot of other expenses are missing: I don't see water, electric, gas, lawn, etc...

They could be a freelancer, or an Attorney, CPA, etc Thats market drivenI would be careful on Water, it follows the house, you are responsible no matter what.Issue a lawn mower and shovel if thats the caseFineGive people a 3-5 day grace period.

From my research, it seems like it's probably pretty common in DFW area to have tenants do lawn-care, but I'd probably need to cover items like pest control, HVAC check-ups etc.Also I am seeing mortgage rates for investment properties ~ 5.75% to 6%.

You can write into the lease that the tenant is responsible for utilities, lawn care and small repairs.

Lawn care, is it the tenants responsibility?

Here's a few from me:1- Code Enforcement: Houses with lots of violation tend to have motivated sellers.2- Driving For Dollars: Driving the block seeing what has uncut lawns and a deferred maintenance.QUESTION: If it's vacant, how do you guys contact the owners?

They have put sign, sidewalk, and flag pole in our lawn. 

Builder creating speculation and artificial inflation.2.