Also, in the case where most of the sales in a town are all foreclosures, yet tax assessments are still at levels reflecting pre-recession values, is there any hope for winning appeals?

Rising interest rates in the last 12 months have not been able to cancel out increasing demand.Sold to List ratio - reflects the discount sellers are willing to negotiate on average:Milwaukee Sept 2018: over 96% (from 94%)Ozaukee Sept 2018: over 97% (from 95%)Looking into the details it's clear that in the first 3 weeks (>21 Days On Market) most properties sell for list price or over; after 21 DOM sellers are more willing to accept less than asking price, after 60 DOM we see some significant discounts (5-10%).Existing Homes vs New Construction: This became very clear to me while I was building a spec home - the cost of new construction is substantially higher than existing homes, as it should.

Not just what is written, but how things work in….practice.Natalie wrote: “I still think it's blindly optimistic that the IRS would qualify someone owning 1 rental as a business”“Blindly optimistic” …. needlessly strong words that reflect on my credibility…..or yours.

Same design used on 5 homes carries 5x the risk for the Architect - the compensation needs to reflect that in a way that fair and equitable.For most remodel projects discussed on BP, I agree that an Architect is not necessary and can quickly erode a project's profitability.

Does this really reflect who we are?

And of course, REIT returns do not reflect individual assets to your point, @Spencer Gray.   

That being said, the 1% rule isn't a good reflection of a properties value.

Those needed maintenance items will be geared to the market and the cost will have been reflected in the purchase price of the property..Every decision is a business decision based on your particular business plan.

.$200K is laughable and $50K is a reflection that your CPA has a lot of overhead to cover in their business.

This dog is truly a lesson of how prejudice still exists in this society and it is definitely a battle to try and get people to stop, observe, determine and then reflect before treating someone or something inappropriately.