Even though they may have a solid rental history, budgeting for repairs makes me nervous.

I've budgeted some money for extra HVAC expenditures (5k committed, 3k overruns), unexpected framing, etc. that an inspector might see.

I never stop being amazed at the value of many of these apps as someone who has had to spend $hundreds and $thousands for business apps in the past.

Thanks for the info everyone, we'll definately be spending the next few months reading and obtaining as much knowledge as possible before buying our first property.

Your approach is too difficult and it is like trying to play cards in the dark, There are a lot more ways to invest using lease options then spending so much time researching properties that may not work.I would recommend sending emails to sellers and advertising as the are many free ways to advertise for sellers, don't spend a lot of time thinking about the property as there will be plenty of time to do the math after you have a potential seller who is interested in a lease option.

This does limit your pool of potential investments somewhat, but I would much rather spend my time working those deals than trying to fit private money into long-term projects.

From my experience, buy & hold investors spending $80k in TN wants something turn-key.

Business days include: •A day when you conduct significant business activity •A day you spend traveling to a business destination (on a reasonably direct route) •A weekend or holiday sandwiched by business days •Weekend stay-over days necessary to save transportation costsWhat Travel Expenses Are Deductible?

I would like to keep a little buffer in there though, maybe 20% of improvement budget.?

I've really enjoyed reading the expert blog articles and spending hours going through the forums.