2) Also, any time there is some change he wants pictures of the roof and the building to be sent to him before he changes anything.

Pull your tenant-landlord laws for your area and arm yourself with as much education as you can about being a first time landlord. 

Answers to the other questions depend on a lot of factors, and the temperature of the market as we head into presumably tough times. 

That’s a lot to ask for guests that are only going to be there a short time.

If the property takes some time to find a tenant, takes money to keep up the payments.

Let us connect, I have something for you part-time.

I used it for the first time with my most recent renter, secured through Furnished Finder, and when my renter decided to stay beyond the inital two-month lease,  Worry Fee Waiver asked specifically for a lease extension, not a new lease, indicating the switch to month-to-month. 

Because the property tax as a non-owner occupied property is about 3-4 times the amount of a owner occupied property.  

How critical was the lender’s turnaround time (e.g., 60 days vs. 90+ days) in your decision?

Westside can be rough especially for a first-time investor.