Because this is a student rental and so is going to utilities included, I was already planning to get a smart thermostat and smart locks. 

Based on inflated home prices it might make sense to utilize the equity to buy that rate down especially if that is a long term rental.

How do you get tenants to pay for the utilities?

Utilities on owner? 

Hi, I'm about to make my first offer on a house.What I have analyzed so far(It will be an Airbnb type rental)- cashflow (for sure)- prices of comparable properties in the neighborhood- amount of property tax- amount of insurance- amount of utility cost- zoning- location, neighborhood- reading reviews of nearby airbnbs- neighbour properties and their future plans- rules for said property around STRWHAT DO I MISS????

We charged our tenants 500 a month, utilities included and typically at any given time had two tenants which covered the majority of the mortgage.

Alternatively, hire a company that utilizes dust collectors with the grinders.

@Jennifer Gardner they IRS exclusion that I referenced only applies if you utilized the property as your primary residence for at least 2 of the past 5 years (which I did in my situation).

If you are utilizing a channel manager on your own, I recommend VRBO (90+ days out) for long range guests (older clientele, who typically have more time and can plan our their stays further in advance) and let ABNB (0-90 days out) bat clean up. 

The manager takes 25% (that's $15k), there's 8% residency tax (so $4.8k), $2k in annual repairs, and another $5k in utilities, yard service, and so on.