CompsLater on I found out that you actually have to not only look at structural/mechanical repairs that need to be done to the home,but also you need to learn what upgrades/ features your comps have(granite,stainless steel appliances,new carpet,new flooring, sun roof, finished basements) After you figure out this information ,when you have your contractor take a look you have to send him your comparables and ask how much would structural/mechanical repairs if any would cost, you then have to ask how much it would be to upgrade your house so it looks like your comps but slightly better. 

Comfort zone on property condition: turnkey rental (no work needed), cosmetic improvements (light rehab), standard improvements (new kitchen, bath(s), mechanicals, etc.) or heavy improvements (major rehab or gut rehab).Even if you are planning on starting with rentals, you might still encounter dealing with contractors if you choose to buy, improve and hold for cash flow, as this creates equity, and might allow for you to tie up less of your cash if able to refinance and recover cash during the refinancing process.Don't be afraid of what you haven't experienced.

We use TenantCloud and have it auto set up, so it takes a bit of the personal feel out of it.

I wouldn’t be concerned about what items to stay away from per se, but more, do all the rehab expenses needed plus the purchase price make this deal worth doing.Obviously you need to not miss anything major like foundations, roof, mechanicals, plumbing, sewer, electrical, etc which is why you should always get it inspected and have an inspection contingency with you offer.

One was a 40-something with a Masters Degree in mechanical engineer who had a net worth over $1.5 million. 

But one telltale clue is that blower motors tend to let off a nasty mechanical rubber-burning stink when they fail -- that's usually a dead giveaway.

All my mechanicals are down there.

If I have 10,000 units of which 1000 tenants have bonds, there has to be some mechanism for managers to know who has what so they know to start our process for submitting to the bond company in case there is something wrong. 

It includes maintenance tracking, lease tracking, auto reminders to tenants, marketing, owner reports, and much more.

.* Get a realtor to put you on daily auto-emails of properties listed at Price/sq ft 70% or less than area average price/sq ft and/or with motivated sellers keywords like motivated, TLC, invest, potential, opportunity, bring all offers, short sale, as-is, seller financing, owner carry, desperate, must sell, fixer upper, handyman, rehab, repairs, problems, issues, foreclosure, REO, bank owned, distressed, probate, death, estate, etc.* REO lists (BP has one, HUD has one).