I was also an adult in 2007 and saw people lose their homes and investors who overleveraged lose their investments when tenants didn't pay rent.

if hvac is really, really old, you could try shopping a "home warranty" that doesn't have hvac caps and exclusions and just get it for "systems." i know AHS used to offer those a while back, but even they started capping to to 3k or something silly.

The tax exclusion possibility goes away in 11/2026, and I think rents are going to soften (they have recently, but we locked in a 2-year lease at what may turn out to be the peak).

adults=1&am...

Not mutually exclusive.   

I booked a place for 5 adults and 1 child (16 y/o) plus 2 dogs a couple months ago because of it being the holiday weekend.  

You can attempt to assure compatibility by interviewing them and taking into consideration your other tenants, but at the end of the day, they're adults and it's up to them to get along.

The breed insurance exclusion will give you a reasonable justification, but it could still get messy if they pursue legal action.Id dig into the true status of it being an ESA and if that pans out as "real" then its reasonable to require the tenant to carry liability insurance for the pet

Over the last 6 years I have been retired as a real estate professional exclusively handling my own properties and living on the income generated.I don't regret the decision and will eventually fully retire.

Why would a borrower go to a retail bank and pay a premium rate when they can go to a mortgage broker that’s tied to wholesale lenders exclusively and save money on closing costs and interest rates?