Then coming to the almost end and biting your nails, trying to figure out where to get the funds for the lighting and kitchen countertop etc, knowing that you can't refinance until it's finished. 

Leaks would be the main reason if the reason for the leak cannot be found in a rental (sometimes a "popped" roofing nail is all that is the cause of the leak).For many landlords, patching a leaking area is often considered before replacement since the cost of patching can be taken off as a repair on taxes which roof replacement is typically depreciated over a number of years.Gail

Mine are closer to 8000 and that was fighting tooth and nail.

Generally, lower level investors try to preserve their costs by entering into limited servicing arrangements which will be a barrier to delinquency and recovery as delinquency and default notices are typically add-on costs to the servicing plan.  

If your goal is to accumulate properties it would probably be better to stick to the 30-year to preserve room in your debt-to-income ratio for future acquisitions.

We try and preserve the investor's money."

Even if you can recover refinishing costs from a tenant's deposits you're shortening the life of the floor, which is expensive to replace.If you put carpet or some other flooring down they'll be preserved until you do decide to sell.

We had our property preservation company go out to change the locks after we conferred with our Attorneys that part of the mortgage allows us to maintain the property if the homeowner lets it fall into disrepair. 

@Dustin Cook nailed it.

Now each trip to Home Depot, for small items like a box of nails, next trip to get some glue, each one of those gets one line (not every item per receipt), one foreman goes 3-5 trips a day, each crew has 1 foreman and maybe 4-18 guys, I have 3 crews.