My wife and I will be paying taxes on the gain from the condo but will he have to pay any gain and do we have to hire a 1031 company since nothing will be held in escrow? 

@Jacob AnstaettEncourage 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.

In my area the water company offers to forgive excess usage if it was caused by a leak.

You're compete with companies that are spending thousands of dollars per month on marketing.

Multiple, billion dollar companies are investing heavy in our area, such as Intel, Google, and Amazon.

Recommendation letters would be fine as well, but personally, I think talking to them over the phone is more ideal as it's easier to get answers and just a better understanding of the tenant. 

Hey David- these are the guys that started Fortunebuilders, a real estate seminar company.

I have done a lot of electrical work over the years and have installed lots of 240V outlets over the years, and my partner's brother owns an electrical contracting company so I could either do it myself or have her brother do it. 

I have used several companies over the years.

I’m not experienced with being a landlord, so I wasn’t sure if I should first acquire a rental close to home to learn the ropes or if I should just look into Florida with a property management company since I plan on moving there within the next to years.