No theft, minimal liability, minimal valuation.      

It's not a form of discrimination, but it is a potential loss of extra income in pet rent (per pet) and pet deposits.

It is a hard pill to swallow, but the fact is that not everyone has the right psychological makeup to be a successful investor; recognizing that and NOT investing can lead to riches or really prevent massive losses. 

Although i believe if you're completely new and plan on contracting out most of the work, its more important to study the areas, network and vet your people than to worry about the WHERE - theres certainly upsides for focussing solely on markets outside your own, its certainly doable and a lot of people do it, even (or maybe especially) when your starting out, the added risk can be minimized and downsides you cant eliminate may be worth the upsides.

@Vincent SerpicoEveryone that I know that bought after 2017, whether primary or investment, is suffering loss now....But the slow down has not run its course yet...Wait until 2022 or later...

@Jason Y.It is only a matter of time that tenant will stop paying completely...I would offer him money for key NOW... that would likely minimize your loss, compare to drag this out

However, the bill will be minimal and in some cases you may have a credit due to not using the power companies power.

So, it might not be a "loss", only on paper. 

Since you're responsible for finding tenants and managing the rental, are you going to take the hit when it sits vacant for two months or a tenant that you placed decides to trash the place and cost $15,000 in losses?

For what it's worth, I started out at age 22, the house was kind of dumpy so I did some initial, minimal cosmetic fixes and got a couple of roommates while I lived in the basement, which was not finished and served as a pretty powerful motivator to get it finished in my spare time.