There are places like Indianapolis and Milwaukee with $50k duplexes that rent for $600/side.If your property isn't losing money and you want to keep it, I'd try to find a way to increase your rent (renovations, etc) or cut your costs (change insurance, refi, etc).As far as amortization, my feeling is that you either want no loan, a very short loan (so you will own it free and clear soon), or a very long loan (so you can cash-flow better).

Wow, one of my first post and I cant believe how fast you all jumped in to help. 

Nobody is going to live in the middle of a major remodel and your craigslist ad does not change the status of "Project in Process" to "Ready to Rent".  

You do have to identify your potential replacements by the end of day 45 and after that day the list cannot be changed.

So we hit a bad streak with houses having issues and GC's and subs taking their time to have things completed on time, quality of work, subs not being paid, my husband and I had to much involvement and time spent so we said we have to change strategies.4) We both work full time jobs so the time we could spend at the job site was limited and hence the reason why you hire a GC but then you start hearing comments "oh it must be nice to work full time jobs, flip houses on the side, and show up here when you want too and do nothing and make all this money!"

Wow this question is so vague I have no idea how to give specifics...On a 10' x 10' room (similar to your standard bedroom) I can remove everything down to the studs in one day.1/2- 3/4 day to rewire (simple cosmetic such as changing the number or location of outlets if you're actually changing the wires itself up to higher codes it can be 3+ days depending on how the house is wired and accessibility)1/2-1 day to insulate1/4 day for any windows or doors that would need replacing for the 1 room2 days for drywall (so long as the studs are straight and level)25 hours of taping (+/- 5 hours depending on the number of corners/edges) spread over 7 days usually front loaded 3-4 hours the first 2 days, then 2-3 hours for the remaining 5 days.2 days painting; 2-3 coatsflooring will depend on the product you're using but unless it's hardwood or laminate you can usually get it done 1 day.1 day trim and molding1 day clean and finishing touches.One thing that shouldn't be overlooked is the time it takes to purchase the materials and get them to the job site.Another is where you can actually do the work.

Immerse yourself in them and in networking.Be intentional about who you spend time with...having/seeking aspirational friends can change your life.

Lots of the same model condos and same types of numbers to run everywhere so not much big time changes to make to properties to help you out.

I have about 6-12 months to make some changes if it'll help my chances.

I would change the leases to monthly upon takeover.