I find it amazing that not a single active member of BP seems to have gone through RDPD and is a proponent of it (or perhaps I just missed their posts?)...

Stay active on the forums, ask questions and build your list of colleagues and I am sure you'll find what you are looking for here.Just my 2 cents.

I am a active Duty Soldier stationed in Hawaii.

Our idea of a good time on weekends is to go look at houses and critique floor plans, space use, etc.What I've found is that a good architect will, for a few thousand dollars, crank out a floor plan faster and better than I can and with much less strain and stress on my heart.

Any activity yet?

If you are not taking in any rent you may consider this a second home and deduct mortgage interest and real estate taxes as if it was simply a second home.That would be why they cannot depreciate it.In some cases such as additional depreciation allowed on business(non-rental) assets you may take additional depreciation the first year.To summarize:They will not be able to depreciate it unless they are in a for profit activity.

The answer should really depend on your age and how easily you can generate cash from activities external to your real estate business.

That would mean tearing up the yard, the walls and ceilings to install it.I pointed out that the kids would be tripping the alarm all the time and activating the sprinkler system.

Once I retire (1.5 yrs) I can be more active but could use cash flow now and I am more bankable now with a job.David, I imagine I could do this myself but starting at ground zero requires lots of research.

I always go into the home at least once a quarter to let them know that I am an active landlord and to also check for real damage, change HVAC filters (Because tenants rarely do and it causes a huge bill) and water damage / prevention (Caulking).