I am still wanting to manage all the tenant screening and so forth and am really just looking for the management of the property (mowing, maintenance on major mechanicals, responding to needs, and occasional inspection that the property is being cared for).

If you have a mechanic in that garage for several years, think about how much oil, petrol, and other chemicals might seep into the ground.

Home office deduction is available if you have a rental property and designated space exclusively used for rental property business.

Replace all the bad flappers, flushing mechanisms, or entire toilets.

They also help with operations as you can run them with one bank account and one set of books (if you manage the books properly by designating funds to each property).

Full disclosure - that is not what we have used, but it seems to get the job done.We did take the time to consult a designer on furnishings and got professional pictures, which seems obvious until you look at your competition, and our unit has booked within a week of listing both times that it has been available.

Crawlspace/foundation, roof, and mechanicals are usually my most expensive items to look for

@Michael D Valadez, Unfortunately as you found, the Chicago Zoning Designations are a little odd in that the "3" in the RS-3 Zoning does not at all mean that it allows for 3-Unit residences.

Atlanta was terrible, but pretty sure I paid $20/night in a shared room so can't say much....My STR in Nashville was furnished by a designer.

You do not want to violate the Dodd-Frank or SAFE Acts that require this designation.