That's $18,000 a month income and their costs are probably 1/3 that.

As long as this 4plex would be in a high-cost area then conventional would still be a possibility for you. 

In this case I would say that for maintenance, you would be best off paying per trip/hourly for the cost of any repairs at whatever is an average median rate for a repair man in your area.

And as the buyer (my colleague) is now getting closer to closing it's starting to look like it might be worth just cleaning the place out and doing a very low cost rehab (paint, pressure wash and handyman repairs) for a quick sale.

.- Market Insights: According to Zillow, home values in Stone Oak have been steadily increasing, indicating strong demand.3.

So if it is 10 years (making up a number) and the unit was 2 years old and a new unit costs $5000, you bill them for 80% of the cost-$4000. 

This leaves us with a little over $1000/month for our housing costs split between my wife and I. 

An agent brought a property that would pay for itself and had the potential to increase rents and make non major improvements to increase rents.

Class A and B property owners are just as concerned about the management costs as class D property owners.

Of course rental rates will likely increase by the time we are ready to rent.