In FL, there are certain items that are required by law.

I'm currently flipping items on craigslist/ebay/facebook for profit.

Tenant's only item building credit is a car loan.

Nick,Now let's touch on a couple more items to put things in perspective a little bit.

One of the painters is a friend so I'm going to meet with him today and walk through the quote to see what work needs to be cut to get to around $5K.The items that immediately come to mind when thinking about cutting are the garage walls, powerwashing the vinyl siding and deck.

Disclosure: I represent Affinity Loss Prevention Services, the chosen loss prevention partner of NREIG/AGMThis question and a few items came up in another thread and warranted further discussion.

There are still tons of people who will buy or rent within an COA/HOA because they like that the who community will be maintained to a certain standard, the cost of shared amenities is spread out, there is a management company who will handle all the maintenance items on the exterior of the unit for you and usually budgets for replacement of items.The cons of a COA/HOA is that they require an application/approval process. 

You will need to have a real estate license, unless you are working as an regular employee of the owner of the PM, this is just a couple of items, there are many many more. 

Replace or repair fixtures as needed.The low-flow items can help if your tenants leave the water running during various activities - tooth brushing, face washing, kitchen activities, etc.Depending on the heating systems, be sure to check that humidifiers aren't wasting water.

@Kory Clark,Yes - a lot of folks like us are still working W2 jobs, including me.If you have money to keep you going, it's easier to be not employed than if you're dealing with bankruptcy, creditors, collectors, etc.One of the key items most folks will miss here on BP is the business foundation of how to build a business to protect you from liability and manage your tax burdens.