And did you retain an interior designer or was the "new Look" yours and your wife's creative tastes? 

The developing east of me continues to build houses and still no retaining pond.

We also retained a lawyer so the property won't forclose.

The previous PM hired the onsite manager, and it was an employee of the previous PM.Now i plan to switch the PM and want to retain the onsite manager. 

I gain occupancy at the end of the month, and looking to begin on some of these projects then.I am a newborn when it comes to the real estate world, but I am trying to retain all the knowledge possible to become successful in this space - building a team, what type of real estate to enter, loan buying options and experience, location location location, you name it.

can you "observe" the property for 24 hours to see if anyone else enters ?

But unlike contributions to a revocable trust where the property often retains its separate/community nature (Via the trust instrument) you’re playing with fire if you’re expecting contributed real estate to fully retain separated property character.

One observation on these forums is that this question elicits strong opinions. 

I would argue that as an investor grows their portfolio, reserves and network, they should systematically reduce the premiums they pay the insurance company to retain the risk, and start to pay themselves to retain the risk.  

What kind of ROI do you see for pieces like: - Firepits- Pergolas- "built into hill" pieces- Retaining wallsThis is an elaborate example below, but you can see what I mean.