Vacancy is costly and while there is no way to guarantee one tenant is going to stay longer than another, talking to people and learning a little about their life and situation should give you some clues as to how long they might stay in your place.The probability of you getting a home-run tenant right off the bat is pretty low. 

I was just under contract for a duplex that needed 2 repairs prior to closing that would have cost in the $7500-10,000 range.

Replacing an HVAC unit for tax purposes is considered an improvement, not a repair and therefor bonus depreciation from the TCJA should still be in effect through the end of this year. 

I would like to express my gratitude to Jack and Russel, who have been gracious with their time and provided valuable guidance related to the DC Metro area.My Strategy:- Invest in rental properties below $400K with a Cash on Cash return of over 6% and an ROI of 7%- Consider flipping opportunities for properties costing more than $500K with an ROI of 7% or higher- Prefer to stay in the DC metro area but i understand that its a tough market for investors.

The cost of the course delivers the best value that I've seen so far.

You will eventually have a house earning $1,000 a month or even $1,500 a month and the property value will be $200,000 more than you bought it for.Instead of incurring more costs by selling and then buying a new property, focus on keeping this one forever and saving up for the next purchase.

@Peter Woerner the last refi I did was a no closing cost loan.

Have you owned horses and understand the liabilities and costs?

There are some new hits that were recently announced from Fannie Mae for the LLPAs (loan level price adjustments) that will increase the cost/rates for second home financing.

There is a common belief that recapture taxes diminish the value of performing a cost segregation study.