This will also allow you to take time on the work and learn first hand each step of the reno process-You have to live somewhere, might as well learn REI in the process - no better way to learn it then to submerse yourself in itWhen I calculate the cash flow for my house hacks, I look at where the rents for each unit will be by the time I renovate the units and am ready to move out (I choose a 1 year window) - Don't focus on the lost rental income while you are occupying the property, you need a place to live anyway - I view the negative cash flow as rent. 

I found a place with boarded up windows and doors.

With a limited window of time, I think you'd have limited success listing on HomeAway or AirBNB, because your ranking there depends in part on availability - if your property is only available a week or two per year, it's going to get buried.  

For instance, taking a wall down or installing a new window, sometimes people think it can be thousands.

@Greg Stetz talk to GCs, trade contractors and investors and build yourself a price list of general cost items like roofing, painting, siding, windows doors etc. offer to buy them lunch or pay them for the time.

Purchase price: $340,000 Cash invested: $86,000 Sale price: $565,000 we gutted the full house. entire plumbing, new electricity new windows all around What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

So it happens that an inspector walked around our current flip and looked inside through the back windows of the house and took pictures (front windows were covered from the inside with curtains).

The home is older, built in the 1930, radon levels are at 5.5, but it does have gas heat (most are oil in this area), and window units for air. 

Taking pics of things like the roof, the windows, the plumbing, any stains, foundation, basement, and major ticket items  is critical. 

If it goes out you yank it out and install new like a window air conditioner.For our area these rents were a little low but not by much.