Find a good one (own handyman on staff, handles minor repairs without contacting you, good ethics).

@Mindy Jensen  is the 121  queen I myself have done it 6 times since I bought my first home in 77.. and will do it one more time before I call it quits.. now I was fortunate that all of them were in the SF bay area and 2 were in Portland.. so I have literally made millions tax free..the specialness of this is unlike when you own rentals there is no recapture and huge penalty when you sell.. you sell get your gain tax free no recapture its by far the best treatment in the US real estate tax code in my mind other than or equal to 1031 if your goal is to roll up and give to heirs at stepped up basis.but yes many builders have done this over the years.and yes you can value add you can do what ever it just has to be your primary and live there 2 of 5 years.. they darn near changed it to 4 years in the new tax code but it got bounced last minute and remained the same.. so in my humble opinion yes its common and maybe a lot of folks don't know it.. but it is truly special and sure has treated me well personally.now if you live in an area were there is limited to no appreciation its not really a factor.. if you bought a home for 120k and sold it 15 years later for 160k  well not going to make a huge differencebut for those in areas likeCA  WA OR  Austin parts of Chicago Boston DC  Miami Charleston etc etc its HUGE>

@Joe Wood The treatment of inherited IRAs varies based on a number of factors (age of decedent, beneficiary designations, etc.) and you may want to seek a tax advisor.

I was showing the home while some of the final work was being completed and in an effort to make things look as nice as possible during showings, I hung window treatments and placed some nice furniture that was already on site.

Rul. 75-292, the IRS held that when an individual received real property in a like-kind exchange and immediately transferred it to a corporation in a tax-free Section 351 exchange, the like-kind exchange failed to qualify for Section 1031 treatment.

These are professionals with additional training and a stricter code of ethics.

You can ask two questions of a service animal:Is this dog a service animal required for treatment of a disability?

You're not talking about a hobby like flying model airplanes or something where the consequences of your actions and her opposition/indifference maybe lead to a couple hours of the silent treatment.  

At a minimum for the bedrooms and bathrooms.I wouldnt trust tenants installing window treatments.  

Additionally, since you need a contractor's W9 or SSN to issue him/her a 1099, you can have some assurance that the contractor is ethical and operating a real business.