One thing I'm not sure of is location in this case, I suppose I could either look in a well established area and expect equity to increase through remodeling or in a less desirable area that I'm gambling will attract more attention in the future.

There are plenty of tips and tricks out there but in the end for STR's it all comes down to creating a valuable experience for your guests....all success flows directly from that but you can certainly increase your bottom line by optimizing processes and reducing costs when possible.  

At the last minute he decided to increase value by adding a chandelier, it almost detailed the project, hilarity ensued, and in the end they got it installed.

There's nothing wrong with increasing the deposit during renewals.

My thoughts are that by setting all the low cost/free marketing efforts in place it allows me to tweak my system for handling leads before I increase the volume. 

I know there is increased risk but I learn by doing and I've also got a very high risk tolerance.QUESTIONS:In order to be in compliance with local law, is the sheriff's office the best place to start?

We started calling tenants on May 15th asking them if they plan on renewing ( with new increases of course ) or moving out.

You need to find out if a) there are empty units that can be filled at the current rents and b) current rents can be increased because they are below the market.

  - my only insurance claim in 28 years of car/home policies was for a windshield (road damaged) 10+ years agoI now realize it is likely for my State Farm policy premium to increase and after having read all sorts of horror stories online, I guess worst case scenario would be State Farm cancelling or not renewing my policy at which point I'd be at the mercy of high risk/$ options. 

They claim to be able to increase your chances of getting approved for a loan or line of credit.