Quote from Account Closed Shah: *Not tax advice*If your involvement in the syndication investment is considered passive and you are not a real estate professional, you generally cannot offset W-2 income with passive losses.

I would define cash-flow neutral as not only accounting for my hard expenses but ALSO things such as maintenance, capital expenses, and vacancy.

Maybe give a credit here if any items or foods were damaged. 

I just pay the cleaners, record the extra expense (all gets submitted to our accountant), and move on. 

They don't reflect on personal credit. 

Consult with your accountant

Wondering if it's necessary to have a professional to the accounting work as to not mess it up for tax reasons.

I am hoping to use a local credit union to get a better rate + pament terms.for capex/vacancy etc. what %tage of my monthly rent should I take into account?

i think there is a misconception that a syndication is like a savings account... although this OP seems to have a strong understanding.if you have 25K to your name... or even 100K... you're not ready. 

At least that's what you would do if theses were credit cards?