🤔 I was raised sharing is caring. 😊  True. 

And I don’t mean something like saying you want to invest in New York City, I mean an expert on specific neighborhoods you have chosen for a specific reason.

As others have stated, your fit & finish goals should be guided by whether you plan to:1) Rent: tenants don't always take care of a property, so you want to use lower-grade materials and workmanship.2) Flip: higher quality on workmanship and materials is usually required.Regardless, you always want to "Maintain to the Neighborhood".

As long my refi goes through ok I think I'd like to hold onto the BRRR and be more careful about what I get into next.

I would be very careful with a contractor demanding a deposit before they start work.

I don't care much about soap and shampoo, but quality TP is something they will definitely notice.

If its an attorney closing state same thing ask the attorney or one of their staff.Generally though be care of those reaching out and promising rates that are simply better than current rates thats almost always a fake lender or a bait and switch..

Set a clear budget, research properties carefully, and keep growth potential in mind as you plan.Good luck!

Secondly when I was more involved with CA RE in the LA basin. 

I'd add a late fee to the lease renewal, but if they are struggling to pay rent now, when the baby comes, they will be down one income for a bit and then have child care, so will likely have more problems.