So, they won’t work with us.We’ve also learned that contractors usually fall into one of the following categories:Type 1 (High Quality, High Price)They can do new construction, additions, full remodeling, but maintenance work is too small for them.Typically pay for advertising, have sales staff, separate bid preparers, inhouse designers, full office support.Equates to a lot of overhead, leading to markups of 50%+.Bids: Usually have a dedicated salesman that does their bids, so able to supply quality bids.Comment: Usually have the highest prices & quality, and so these are the contractors you’d hire to work on your own home.

@Francis Beattie the biggest frenzy is in SFR, where you are going to be competing against emotional home buyers that are being whipped into bidding wars by overzealous realtors. 

Separately, my wife and I both have w-2 jobs that combine to about $200k/year and we have no problem signing for mortgages with personal recourse.

I have three Rottweilers, but they're emotional support animals.

Like an LLC or whole separate business? 

I then removed interior wall separating living room from kitchen and installed supporting beam.

@Justin GottusoThe unique tax thing about Ohio compared to other states in the county is the abundance of locality/municipality returns within Ohio.You may be required to file a separate locality return if you are doing business within that locality.I.E. if you have a rental in Cleveland and Cincinnati, you may be required to file a Federal Return, Ohio State Return and two separate locality returns.Below are some tips to find a Local CPA that specializes in real estate1) Attend a Local REIA / Real Estate meetup and see who other investors are using as a CPA2) Network with other investors from your City/State that you find on bigger pockets and see who they use as a CPA3) Look for CPA's with good google/yelp reviews where 'real estate' is mentioned in the review.

I would probably run a solar powered lamppost where the stump has been ground -adding visual separation between the drive and walkway. 

You reserve a portion of the rents into a separate fund so you don't have to come out of pocket.

The reason for the LLC to me is to keep it's operations separate and distinct from my other businesses, for operational reasons.