Landlords must follow the proper legal eviction process, even if the tenant is no longer paying rent or utilities.Since your "friend" has already initiated the eviction process and is waiting for the sheriff to remove the tenant, it's important to let that process play out legally.

Thanks for the insight Rich 

I think it is an awesome program because of the following. - Must be on a new construction home - Must be under $450k (which can be hard to do on new construction here) - Also protects against deflation by saying if the equity upon sale is less than $20k, only 50% of the equity needs to be paid back.

Quote from @Devin James: Stay the course!

Even if there was something there, they headaches and costs of going through a lawsuit likely to quickly outpace the $40k that is at risk (any good attorney will tell you it isn't worth the effort).  

Who decides the rent?

Just wanted to ask if any investors in the Austin/Cedar Park area with experience in rehabbing with today’s constructions costs had any general tips on estimating rehab costs for a property? 

You would want to go back through your records and find your purchase price, your closings costs, and any improvements.  

This way, even if the monthly payment remains the same, the amount you pay towards principal each month goes up. 

I’m looking for some guidance on my next steps toward achieving financial freedom through real estate.My long-term goal is to acquire enough rental properties to secure my financial future.