Maybe he can set me up at the brokerage in the mean time so I can start getting my feet wet, and learn what goes on at these places.

@Nick Michaels ahhh that's so frustrating- when the timeline/etc forces you to say screw it and just have to cough up the extra change.

Here is What NOT to do:- Do not spend all of your savings fixing up the okay kitchen when you have not fixed the pipes, replaced the destroyed carpet, and taken out the wet wood panels all because (we are doing renovations anyway)- And do not run around aimlessly How we handled it:- We did spend most of our savings fixing the kitchen and now have to do most of the work ourselves to get the actual issues in the house fixed (Fix critical issues before aesthetics Always)- Fix the frozen pipes: Done- Fix all taps, shower heads, and fixtures destroyed during the flood: Done- Take our the destroyed carpet in the basement: Done- Repaint all rooms, baseboards, and door trims: DoneIn summary, when faced with an issue:1.

I'm particularly looking for somebody with a contractor's license that would be familiar with wet basements, and could accurately characterize extent of water damage, mold presence, and be able to quantify an approximate repair budget for the same.  

For example, often fire damage is water damage--they put the red stuff out with wet stuff.

My challenge will be to market the property to get off-season bookings and hopefully I can get the snowbirds to come out wet for the winter...

Understanding soil applies to any property nationwide, but certain areas of TX have clay soils... but damage can be mitigated by using automatic soaker hoses to wet soil around foundation.

I wanted to get my feet wet with this first property and to make sure real estate is for me.

If they shut either off there's usually a reconnection fee you have to cough up.

I just want some guidance on how to quickly start, get my feet wet, and make the bigger choices later on, when I start stacking rentals.