Hey Ontario, I was wondering as a real estate investor and an architectural designer -How often do you get permits for repairs and changes?

Quality is important to us.

I am concerned about these upcoming repairs. 

I did about $18,000 in repairs.  

The actual management of the property does not take up a significant amount of time (depending on the quality of tenant and property- I would suggest both being good to great) but leasing the property does take special skills that are better "contracted out."

They never tell you this in the get-rich-quick buy-and-hold seminars, but there are simply a LOT of people who do not have and don't want to acquire the mindset and diverse skill set of a quality property manager.I also tell new investors to go through your first eviction with your lawyer.

2) 2% for repairs seem low for a 4-unit. 3) 2% for vacancy seems low as well. 4) i would go 10%-15% overall for a vacancy and repairs budget. dependent on area and tenant base.

I'd love to hear more about how to save for a downpayment, what sort of personal savings buffer to have, and what sort of reserves I should have for emergency repairs.

I know the benefits are home warranty and no cap x or repairs expense needed in the beginning.

They often use inexpensive poor quality materials as they create carbon copies of these properties to sell as quickly as possible before they move onto the next one.