We just change the batteries every few months as a good practice to minimize a potential issue.

you should be collecting the rent offsetting the mortgage but still foreclosing.. don't let the owner just take the rent.. 

She found out later that the oil company in question had a practice of never settling and any attorney suing them would be in for a long hard fight.

I have tried gathering information on best strategies and practices but I am having issues.

Only Gatlinburg ever collected "nights rented" data and their reports show the same results - steady in 2008-2009 and growth onward.

Disclaimer: While I’m an attorney licensed to practice in PA, I’m not your attorney.

It could potentially be a great platform for all of us to share best practices or pain points that we inevitably deal with as a landlords, but why deal with it alone? 

I used to live in DMV as well before I moved to NY, I live in Queens area NY and I am doing REI, I have a great money machine with no hassle property in Winchester NY, No need and repair and there are a good tenants who are already living there so there is no more money or time you need to invest aster you bought it, just start collecting money....Right now it is generating 12K+ a month.

Refi the amount that makes sense based on what rent you can collect.  

I would not rely on what the seller is telling you, unless he can produce the background checks and credit checks reports for you from these tenants if he collected it in the past.