So many mistakes.

It's really important to go through everything upfront, as the timelines are pretty tight once you start, and certain mistakes will disallow the 1031 in its entirety.Thanks Jackson!

@Sharon McCants - I lean toward the advice from @Jonathan Greene on your question.Years ago, I made the mistake of forgoing quality for quantity, which led to headaches and a fundamental change in the way our company operated and in the way I personally invested.

Here are the top 5 mistakes I see by new renovators, but would love to get more added to the list as we go:1.

@Kenneth P FordRecommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

Quote from @Jeremy VanDolder: First, I think you made a mistake by sending a cleaner once a month.

I feel like we eliminate folks with batch tours that can't make the timing work that day. 

Now for my out-of-pocket expenses:Down payment: $7500 (Hard money loan 90% purchase price 100% rehab)Closing costs: $6500Inspection: $400Agent's commission: $5200 (didn't raise purchase price of house with seller concessions, so that money didn't apply to the commission sadly. won't make this mistake again)Holding costs: $1300 (one interest-only payment of $770, roughly $200 in utilities and $360 in insurance)Total: roughly 21 grand. 

So in a significant recession, merely being active or passive is not actually a way to avoid losses.Finally, there are a lot of active investors who lose their money even *outside* of a recession because they make too many newbie mistakes.

Need to try though.For the future, to not repeat your mistake, read this post:https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/51/topics/1167632-expla...