@Eva Hambrick a few things...First, I obviously want a CPA who is a experienced in rental real estate; including things like depreciation, capital improvements vs maintenance expenses, passive activity losses, applying 1031 exchanges, etc.Second, as both a business owner and real estate investor, I want my CPA to understand that I have both earned income and passive income, and help me strategize how to reduce my tax liabilities from this standpoint.Finally, I want my CPA to be proactive in helping me plan and manage my tax strategy as part of my overall financial health all year long, not just file my tax return in April.

It seems to me that this is a good thing because her debt is reduced, she'll just have to wait a little longer to save up for her down payment again.

If I funnel the cashflow into my mortgage to pay down the principal, I will be reducing how much interest I pay on the mortgage over time (assume the mortgage interest is 4%), but I'm having trouble understanding if this is directly comparable (e.g. 4% mortgage interest vs 2-3% if I invest the money in bonds) since I'm not paying off the whole mortgage in those five years. 

Although I don't want to be actively working on more than one home at a time, I would like to reduce the downtime between completing and listing one house and starting on the next.

When we off shored this job we reduced our cost for this work by 90 percent as we no longer needed someone full time in the office.Key to staying in business... dont pay more for things than you have to.

This allows you to evenly administer a policy without stress AND without legal risk of discrimination charges. 

If the owner pays for water, then there is nothing you can do to reduce that cost. 

.-3 months to finalize refinancing options: this was a very stressful process that could have been very easy and quick if I understood how the banks went about refinancing and different types of bank's capabilities.

My thoughts:- There must be a certain cash flow rule of thumb that will allow you to reduce rates if needed to avoid vacancies and continue to cover your mortgage and expenses- Diversifying with other real estate or investment strategies may be advisedOther thoughts?

You can take the loss on this property as a way to help reduce taxes on your other rental income.2.