I also will remove them if the tenant prospect indicates they have their own, rent is not reduced. 

This will pay down your loan and thus reduce your interest much more than a refi will at this point.  

Reduce debt, improve your credit score. 7.

Also, utilize the MassSave program for any quick renovation upgrades (0% interest for 7 year loan on energy efficient household items).

It will be reduced by any expenses you put into it, renovations, ect, as well as buying and selling costs. 

Been asked on BP a million times...... quick raise to market or slow raise....no "right" answer....Its a balance..... big rapid jump often induces turnover...... and turnover costs $$ in the short term (rehab cost vacancy etc) but cant pay off in the long run..... getting to market faster recoups that expense for the rehab and vacancy etcSlow, smaller increase keep the tenant and reduced the short term expenses but doesn't maximize the return over the long haul necessarily......As stated before....make sure you are comparing apples to apples..... a lot of new landlords think their old beat up place will rent for the same as the nice new places just because its the same bedroom/bath/sq footage as the ones they looked up......Do they math.... if you can rehab it cheap and quick and jump up a lot to market, then you make you $$ back fast...... but don't fool yourself into thinking that always happens

Actually, part of the beauty in a long term strategy (10+ years) is that you can factor that there will be a recession at some point in your hold and therefore reduce the need to time the market.

Some of us inexperienced investors have no money, a ton of energy, and time.  

So lots of big boxes have been reducing their footprints down lately.

The goal is to spend the next couple of years massively reducing your monthly expenses, thus massively increasing your net income.