An appraiser will give you 100% value for a sprinkler system, the tenants love it, it saves your yard, and it's a nice marketing bonus when you go to sell...no brainer.Fenced yards are also a huge plus, 70% of potential tenants will have pets so you should plan on it as well. 

No evictions4 .No aggressive breed petsFinally a couple passed the screening .They came saw the house n fell in love.But once applications came in red flags started popping upOne candidate is perfect but other is not .Here are there screening results1st candidate790+ creditMakes 4x rentBeen on current job for 18 yrsNo pets No evictions Credit report has nothing serious2nd candidate620 creditMakes 1.8X rentNo petsCouple of late payments on credit report and those are in past 3 yrsBeen on current job for 3 yrs4 collections on credit reportNo evictions.Interesting things to note about applicant 1&2Both are not married in sense they claim single status on application Both work at same place under one boss .Both are living in separate apartments .Coming to live together under 1 roof in my rental.The 2nd candidates current landlord (apartment)says she owes 800$ in cleaning fee as she left 7 bags of trash and dirty carpets and messed up cabinets, she paid rent on time but didnot put a security deposit so they cannot collect the cleaning fee.Will you rent to these applicants .If so what precautions you will take?

Think of all the things that could go wrong and see if the lease addresses them: unauthorized pets or tenants, early termination, security deposit, lease violations, late rent, eviction, lawn maintenance, parking, etc.5.

Also to add.. in addition to the security deposit, I hold refundable pet deposits.

I always see landlords asking for additional “pet deposits,” operating under the notion that pets are potentially more destructive than people  Applying that logic to a $1000/month rental unit that can accommodate 4 people, would it make sense to set the security deposit to $1000 for 1-2 people, and $2000 for 3-4 people?

I had a tenant burn the house down and it killed all the pets in the home :(

Shorter-term lease options, including month-to-month, are available, and will be charged additional monthly rent (up to 125% of long-term rental rate) and/or a non-refundable convenience fee of $300.Please review the lease agreement prior to applyingSmoking Policy: Our rentals are strictly non-smokingTenant’s guests who smoke should only smoke outdoors, at least 25 feet from any door or window and not on the propertyTenants will be fully responsible for damage caused by them or their guests during their tenancyPet Policy: If pets are allowed, pet deposit may equal up to 100% of security depositPet rent of $30 per pet (up to a maximum of $90 a month) may be appliedMaximum 3 petsBreeds not allowed by insurance include, but are not limited to: Animals with a previous bite history or vicious propensities, Dobermans, Chows, Rottweilers, Akitas, American Staffordshire Terriers (Pit Bulls), attack dogs and Wolf Hybrids, (or any mix thereof) Ostriches, Emus, Horses, Farm or Ranch animals, or any type of wild exotic animals or pets.

All pets are emotional support, so what???

Would a backyard fence be good for family with small kids and pets?

Considering the average Class C eviction + turn over + vacancy represents a bare minimum loss of $2,000 in unpaid rent, court costs, and clean up, it's nothing to spend $50 hiring a real estate floor agent to drive by the current home, snap a picture of the outside, pictures of their pets, and peek inside while the applicants sign a copy of the listing data then forward all of that.