Participating as an investor in a crowdfunding project might interest you and mitigate some concerns with respect to distance from the property.

He chose the apartment partially based on their no pets policy. 2) They smoke pot on the porch (now legal in NV). 3) They participate in various other activities like drinking and vaping. 

We were able to address it by putting CCTV cameras and getting the tenants to participate in a neighborhood crime watch.Another challenge was we found the previous owner did not install some of the roofs properly so we had to replace some of them.Lessons Learned:1.

Make your Dad proud of what you have accomplished so that he may ask you to participate in your deals.

The following link confirms that real estate may be held inside an IRA for those who are new to investing IRA funds in real estate. http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Retirement-Plans-FAQs-regarding-IRAs-InvestmentsAlso, the following link discusses the IRA prohibited transaction rules: http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Plan-Participant,-Employee/Retirement-Topics-Prohibited-TransactionsLastly, for those who are self-employed, you can open a solo 401k, then process a solo 401k participant loan and subsequently use the borrowed funds to invest in real estate outside of the solo 401k or IRA.

Needless to say, this experience soured me on participating in real estate investing, but I've never lost the love for the business of real estate.After years of maturing and learning on the sidelines, I'm really ready to get back!

Therefore, holding rentals in your S-Corp in hopes of using the losses to offset your active income is not an appropriate strategy.Unless: You can qualify as a real estate professional and demonstrate material participation in your rental activities.

If you fill out your profile and participate in the forums so people know who you are you may find that you have found the site you are looking for right here.

If the tenants conserve and the utility use goes down, I would offer a rebate to the tenants for their participation in utility conservation. 

The two ideas you mention require the property owner's participation.