I will be a first time landlord very soon and am putting my system in place to try and be as efficient as possible with time.

The more i learn i feel i need to make the most of what i have and use it efficiently.

Something tells me that if someone approached David with decent communication skills and some research done beforehand and a desire to make a working relationship, he'd consider helping out to pay it forward.... 

You'll have to be able to differentiate between an emergency (roof coming off, front door smashed in and unlockable, no heat during winter, pipe burst and water leaking/pouring in the unit, etc) and what's something that can be added to a maintenance list and handled in one visit so the tenant knows how you'll take care of their problems.Doing the above involves setting standards for proper communication with you.

@Andrew Johnson thanks for the input - I understand the logic of being on every list and then going with the one that is lowest but that simply isn't the most efficient use of my time.

Communication!

Here are a couple of questions you can ask.1) Do they own real estate in the market and are they actively buying2) Do they purchase or own real estate in the areas they are currently selling (in other words, would they own what they are selling)3) Do you pull permits on your jobs4) Is their PM company licensed 5) Explain how your property mgmt company is transparent with maintenance and billing your property management company (Probably most important as a non-transparent PM can bleed you)6) How does your Property Management company excel in communicating to the investor (also important as you are out of state)

That said, they're more expensive, have fewer buyers (though the market around here has been very active for that property class), so if you decide being a landlord isn't for you you may face a longer time to sell.Also, with larger properties you get into efficiencies of scale, where by having more tenants, maintenance issues, etc, centrally located, you're able to deal with those problems with less travel time and operating costs because you/your handyman can do multiple repairs without having to drive between multiple properties. 

I bet the old tenant is blowing smoke About talking to a lawyer  Stop stressing and either pay her or give her your lawyers name so her lawyer can send any communications to yor lawyer.

Being the proactive guy that I am, I am looking into ways to structure our assets and income sources so that they are tax efficient.