I found a “mentor” pm company out of PA and she helped us a ton with choosing website platform, software, etc because she had tried several by that point and we have had the best of the best from the beginning which has been awesome not having to switch systems like she did.

There are several great local networking groups.

I wouldn't even look at COC return - I have seen several triplexes with 25% returns but they only produce $4k of cash flow... 

It is really hard to even get deals from your sphere of influence because there are several other licensees in that sphere.I have never hired anyone so I can't really offer you input there. 

I'd contact the water company, and do some comparison of water usage for the same times over several years...More people = more flushes, more showers, more everything. 

we did a reno where we more than doubled the square footage, but in that process, several of the existing rooms were expanded and made larger, along with additional rooms which were larger. 

Any of you enrolled with NAR's AHP (association health plans)?

As my colleagues explained, the short story is:there are no tax benefits from LLCs for rental propertiesyou may still want to create an LLC (or several) for legal protection reasons, not for taxesasset protection is for attorneys only, not for friends and not even for accountantsif your business becomes something other than rentals - then you might need an LLC for tax purposes, but it's a separate conversationGood luck!

She has shown me several already and some times I feel bad asking her to show me so many knowing it will be a while before I can buy or before I choose the perfect one.Also, I will be looking at off market deals....can you get a very good feel for a place when it is full of tenants....and is it hard viewing a full home, when you have intentions of kicking them all out when I purchase it?

You are able to chat immediately and get estimates from several vendors.