PG County just past rent control 3% + CPI capped at 6% or whichever is less.

If you didn't have A/C before and would not be adding it with a furnace replacement then the mini-split might get you more rent and increase the home value a little.4.

The real question is how much are you going to save on rent and how long are you willing to live in a house that is “uninhabitable”.

Deegan and @Arda Bircan There are technically 7 Tests for Material Participation (but 3 that are most common) -> the individual 500 hour mark, that the activity of the individual is substantially all, and that the individual participates more than 100 hours + no-one else spends more time than them.Litmus Test: Are your hours integral to the operationsThe hours that qualify must be substantially all hours and have a legitimate impact on the rental activities.Activities that generally count: showing the property for rent, taking tenant applications & screening tenants, preparing & negotiating leases, cleaning & preparing the units for rent, repairs, and improvements, managing the construction, purchasing supplies & materials, inspecting the property, responding to tenant complaints & inquiries, collecting & depositing rents, evicting tenants, writing & placing advertisements, and working on your websiteActivities that don't count: education & research, investor-type activities, and travel time..

It is currently renting at almost 2x the mortgage, so there is a strong consideration to keep it.

if the question is - should you get started by putting 20-30% down and be negative for several years hoping rents will go up? 

I have never purchased a home before but in the town I would potentially move to renting makes little sense do to the cost of housing prices.

Trying to educate myself on all the rules that I need to follow from regulatory perspective before the property is rented.  

Especially since you have so much help.A rented sander and supplies will cost you about $300... all the rest is labor.

Or to just raise the rent to make it more worth while to deal with them.