Doing some rehab is generally one of the more common ways to do so.One other item to add, when analyzing a property in a hot market, looking at cash flow and cash-on-cash return alone doesn't give you a good picture.

I actually use 10% of the gross rents whatever that number is.Instead take that $3000 at the beginning of the lease and put into Crowdfunding account for 11-12 months @ 7-8%.If a capex item or repairs comes up in inside the lease term, use a 1% cash back credit card to pay for the repair, and use cash flow to pay down the CC until the Crowdfunding contract matures, usually 11-12 months if you can find one like PeerStreet is what I use (1K mins).Now this assumes you have the full maintenance reserve set aside up front and that your cash flow can handle the $250 or 10% a month reserve to begin with, but I always factor that in.Basically I'm leveraging my maintenance reserve for short term private funding and not letting it sit in a checking or savings account at .05%.  

Hello!We are in the process of screening new tenants for our rental property. I am beginning to wonder if there are renters out there who do NOT have things in collections?? To me, having accounts in collections shows...

I have a home that is for sale that just had its inspection and there are several things that need to be fixed but I would prefer not to go through my contractor since he would be very expensive.The items are things like patching a small foundation crack, scrubbing a small bit of mold from the crawlspace and fixing the alignment on one of the closet doors, etc. things like that.Appreciate any referrals!

Should I be having scheduled inspections of certain items on the property (AC, plumbing, roof, etc.)?

These items you can ask for and you can verify this information.  

This operation will help you by keeping your personal items out of the reach of a legal action against your business.Another thing you should consider, unless money is no problem to have cash, is to get your financing figured out.  

You're getting what you paid for a "rent collector" and that's about it, they aren't going to lift a finger to go out and look at your properties, meet a contractor, go to an HOA meeting, the list goes on and on......

As far as bringing certain items up to code, the only way you'll know what you're dealing with is to have zoning go through the house. 

With older homes there may be some deferred maintenance and maybe some unseen big ticket items that could come up like plumbing or electric.