use a tenant screening service to run credit / look for evictions.   

It is not a measure of your quality of character if you do not naturally know how to be a good landlord the second you hand over the cashier's check to buy your first investment property.

Hey @Deepak Kumar,@Benjamin Riehle has high quality posts about the Tucson market that get me excited.

I read about how to rent, how to screen, how to buy, etc. 

I made the same argument at first as well for someone with multiple rentals (As I do for like...home office deduction, if you're managing 5 rentals, collecting rents, screening tenants ect...I am comfortable taking that deduction- I was going to apply same here but saw a no aggregation wording) 

KNOW what you get for different price points as far as quality of construction, cabinets, faucets, flooring, appliances, etc.

But if I'm right, start advertising, fix the roof, and have it done by the time your screening process is done.In addition, since it's a small simple roof, as you said.

We invest in Portland and the West End......you just have to be strict about how you screen......have a criteria and stick to it...... run yours numbers and don’t get anything with tight margins for cashflow......there are some nice areas in the West...... drive around and you’ll be able to tell......

These days, most landlords in California use some type of online screening service. 

In an attempt to add value to her and the education they will be providing me, my thought is to hire a friend of mine who produces high quality video content for real estate agents and auctioneers(yes, there will be drone footage).