I explained to the broker, the option is price is higher than the appraised value, we got a higher deposit because of the option, and we are not responsible for maintenance and repairs because of the option to purchase.

And remember the rule of thumb: if you're not renovating your property, you should expect any rehabber to pay no more than 70% of the perceived after repair value, less any repair costs or other profit needed.

There are of course a lot of reviews in these forums and elsewhere (turnkey reviews etc.) but I'm looking for aggregate and detailed log data.For example, all of the incidents (repairs, issues) that the PM company logged across their entire portfolio.

@Rick Golden get the specifics on the numbers, figure in PM, capex, vacancy, repair, etc and if the numbers work for you then do it.

@Chris RandInvestors who have rental properties report their rental activities on schedule E.You report rental income less expenses(insurance, utilities, repairs, mortgage interest, real estate taxes, depreciation etc).The great thing about real estate is that you may have a cash-flow positive business but report a taxable loss thanks to depreciation.The difference between cash-flow and taxable rental income is that depreciation is factored into taxable rental income and principal payments are not a tax deduction.generally speaking cash flow - depreciation + principal payments = taxable rental income

It takes a lot of practice, a lot of not responding right off the cuff when you have to deal with junk, but it does pay well if you can gain the respect of your tenants, and take care of their repairs whenever they call. 

Small home repairs and late night phone calls are a minute part of land-lording, there are also a lot of legal aspects involved. - City rental certifications can be required- There is certain paperwork that you need to give someone at the time of signing a lease with them (lead based paint       disclosure and pamphlet, inventory checklist, etc...)- If someone stops paying rent you may need to go through an eviction process- When screening tenants you need to do a thorough check of who you're renting to- There are several Fair Housing laws you need to be aware of when placing a tenantOften times, a PM company will even be able to cover their own cost by receiving the highest rental amount possible for your investment, most likely higher than you could by yourself due to the exposure and avenues they have for marketing.

It cash flows at $650 a month and yes that is with 25% set aside for cap-ex, repair, and vacancy.

The HIGH cost of repairs, turnovers, vacancy was killing my cash flow and starting to erode my faith in buy/hold investing.   

My best guess walking around was that it needed some fairly moderate repairs.