Inflation has softened considerably during the pandemic and poses no threat to our economy for the time being.

I would have to wait for prices to return to refi it (and credit markets to soften), but my DTI with rental income (0% - 7%) should allow me to get into another deal here in Denver at depressed prices (at 20% down).

At the very least I want to be prepared for when the market softens once the foreclosures and short sales start again. 

The ones I can think of that I won't be covering  - Kitchen/cooking (tinfoil, parchment, saran wrap, baggies), shampoo/conditioner, Food (coffee, tea, sugar, salt/pepper, spices), dryer sheets/fabric softener, general cleaner (like a Lysol spray), Kleenex.Any differences for you between what you do cover/what you don't? 

And condo rentals may be softening in some spots.

You’ll be tempted to soften the blow but don’t, you’ll just give them the ammo to take you down.

. #1 - I'm not so certain that asset prices won't soften in the next few months making flipping now tricky (in a few months, it may be great!).

From working and talking with Investors it sounds like the rental market for SFR and Townhomes is still strong, but with Condos we have seen softening in the rental market. 

But if your state has a similar program, it might soften the blow for the seller.

To your other point, we did feel a little bit burned on our last refinance when the appraisal came back $15,000 less than what we paid... after increasing gross rents by $175 per month and updating water heaters, water softeners, and doing some landscaping.