Yo0 may also go after her for the rest of the rent.

If you can collect enough in rent to just cover the major debt service and accept the rest in the form of appreciation that your renter is adding by fixing it up for you....you both win.Just a thought.

Instead I aim at houses where my 20% down payment (finance the rest) cash flows $200-$500 after mortgage TODAY.

Many may never use this feature, but it is sure great to have this option.Roth Solo 401(k) - you can maintain additional, separate 'bucket' under your Solo 401(k) plan where you could make after tax contributions, thus, investing tax free for the rest of your life.

First, they are only Private Letter Rulings, so the rest of us can not rely upon them.

You can pick any size that is slightly smaller and trim out the rest with wood, trim and siding or aluminum.

I highly suggest you get your license and apply those skills so the rest of the world can benefit from them.      

I don't have much to add except that you focus on the #2 above and the rest is taken care by the market.  

I wanted to get the opinions of all the smart people on this forum on whether the rest of the stained drywall really ought to be removed (to prevent further problems, e.g. mold), or if it would suffice to just to let it sit for a little bit longer (i.e. to make sure any possible moisture is dried out)  before applying kilz and painting over it.

I give them a 10% down payment towards the $527K and they finance the rest to me under the current terms of their mortgage.