I can certainly make some suggestions on a Georgia-tested lease, but I've gotta say this first...If you're raising the rent anyway, I would strongly urge you to consider adding in enough margin to have the property professionally managed.Property management is where most buy-and-hold investors lose their shirts!

This is a recipe for failure, being taken advantage of, losing a ton of money, etc. 

[Biggerpockets] is notorious for the no and no money down niche, but you really need to have a good financial runway prior to investing otherwise you will lose your bottom when it goes sideways.Read all the usual books.

Stuart Grazier at 3:10 Storehouse Ventures.

It can be done cheaper,does it  worth  to spend more time on searching for a cheaper one, losing time, paying holding costs etc... who knows how long it will take. you might not save much at the end of it.If you know their work, or got referrals, I think it is fine.

Take a look at condos too, not only townhomes, they won’t appreciate as much and they will be the first to lose value during a recession/correction, but they are cheaper than townhomes/SFH and if the HOA fees are not ridiculous, they can probably cash flow a little better.

My husband and I are starting out our real estate venture!

No one envisions a car wreck or a fire or even a calamity that causes them to lose their job and being foreclosed upon within a few days, etc.

We have experience rehabbing properties together, but this will be the first time we venture into a short term flipping project.

Which I don't want to do because then I lose all the flexibility I love about the HELOC to begin with.On the subject of the large minimum monthly payment, it screwed up my debt-to-income ratio and that was one of the factors that blocked me from getting the refi I'd had planned.