Don't send me comps on houses with pools from 2013 if this house is pool-less.

I'm just worried that the revitalization may be too far in the future for a newbie like me to handle the current renter pool.

Little things like spotlights, cutting back shrubs and trees from in front of windows and doors, fences, locking gates, alarm signs, using cameras in some instances, caging AC units and placing the AC unit in the back yard behind fencing, using security doors in front and back and lastly keeping properties occupied.  

-Who gets the backyard?

That obviously requires capital from you and requires you to assume risk you probably don't want.So even though this kind of arrangement is not uncommon in the investing world, banks won't do it, so there isn't a way to expand your pool of buyers this way.

Although it doesn't generate 2% rent like other areas of the country, Fredericksburg area offers a strong buyer pool as people in government and defense industry constantly moving in and out of the area.

There's no barrier to entry you have to overcome, so why not just invest in your own backyard (doesn't have to be right this instant, but markets are cyclical so there will always be opportunities).Cash flow may not be as readily apparent on Day 1, but there's almost nothing capital can't fix! 

I am thinking that once I add in the closet and get an operable window installed tomorrow..... that when I go to have it re-appraised, that my Lender will draw from the pool of appraisers in the area, and I will most likely get a new one.My main concern, is doing this work to the property ( closet and window ) , and then having it re-appraised, paying the $550 again, and yet still not getting an appraisal / value put on the property , due to there not being any 2 bed 1 bath houses that have sold within the last year for comparable salesSince no two houses are exactly alike, you cannot easily compare them at face value.

I like that my mutual fund or stock doesn't bother me with snakes int the backyard or shady tricks in court when trying to evict!  

Many have offered to 'invest' but I don't want the oversight or in the end, to possibly lose a friend.I like small multi-families in my backyard.  4 unit properties are nice, as they are residential, but my sweet spot is the 7-24 unit.