I have kind of written off the money, but I think it is more out of principle to help the next landlord down the road and to teach her a lesson.

...could it be that the stereotype of the landlord being sued by the scheming, opportunistic tenant is as rare as the 2 a.m. maintenance phone call (most people are sleeping at 2 a.m. and not many things spontaneously break on their own at that hour)I've been doing the landlord thing for 30 years and have never gotten an evening maintenance call later than 8:00 that needed immediate attention.

Granted it is not liquid, but it is an asset and down the road if I marked my equity asset value down 20% for a quick sale I still make more on my portfolio.This is not a swipe against the way you do it.

I agree with @Theo Hicks about getting into real estate and believing in yourself to handle the road bumps ahead.

If possible, see if you can get an eviction on the person, as this will follow the person down the road the next time they attempt to rent another place.

Even though the house on Lot B is on a totally different road from the apartment building the person at the city has told me that there is no way we can get the 4 garages on Lot B zoned off and added to Lot A. 

Not so much worried about the lender being a road block.

I'm negotiating on a particular property that doesn't have a lot in the way of comps...so I'm trying to price it based on income. 2.5 acres along a major road in West Houston/Katy area.  3 components on property bringing in income. 10 year old 2 bedroom house on almost an acre, rented out for $1250/mo (haven't run rental comps but I think the house could get $1500/mo)Tire shop that pays $1000/mo rent, been in business 10 yearsAbout 1.5 acres that's used for truck/heavy machinery storage.

When his life hits a bump in the road he will derail.

Consider your heating options down the road when the existing unit becomes difficult or costly to maintain.