They had a budget but they through it out the window and went $150K over... approved for a VA loan... zero down... take home pay around $100K.

Have some repairs to do on the gutters, flooring, fixtures, and windows but overall a really nice property.

There was some work done on the house, but there were lots of small details and finishes that needed fixing, so we handled that (e.g. adding nice affordable trim to mirrors, privacy on windows, touch up painting, caulking everywhere, etc. and Corby got his trusted contractors to deal with most other things.

With a 2-5 year window before your 1031 I don't believe you'd have problems.

Also, i think i should paint the window molding.  

I think the visual problem you may be having now, is with the high contrast of the smooth white window frames against the dark rough stone... it pulls your eye right to it, and there's nothing much else to grab your attention.My recommendation: First, redirect your attention to the entry/stoop.

., new appliances, flooring, bathroom updates and new windows) and raise it to market rents?

Siding back in the day was vertical for a reason.

I don't know what to suggest regarding the window.

Hi Kim,The house is screaming for a proper proper porch/entry with a portico... it would completely transform the front facade and give the house some much-needed curb appeal.That said, with your extremely limited budget, the next best solution would be build a MUCH bigger wood porch over the existing one (no demo cost, and it's below the entry treshold) that extends a few feet farther into the yard from the house, and if you can afford it, to the far right small window.Either way, build two simple fat columns at the corners of the porch that would be about a foot higher than the railing, and positioned just outside the two smaller windows flanking the entry door.Then, paint the entry door a deep, very rich burgundy.It probably would exceed your super-tight budget, but would absolutely be worth the investment.