Deducting those fees will go away in 2018 with tax reform so I'd argue there is possibility for tax savings especially with the increasing number of properties.Hopefully this helps someone track more expenses that they ordinarily would have eaten as a personal expense.

It seems that having to pay interest on the down payment is a bad idea, but if the increased cash flow allows for it, maybe it could work?

We may consider turning 1-2 units into short-term rental properties so that we have increased income from those but stable income from the others.I'm just wondering if I am missing anything with the numbers.

In CA it will make increasing sense as it is mandatory for all new construction under three stories to be equipped with solar systems starting Jan 2020.

My wife and I have been considering that it is time to increase the rent - yet want to maintain them as tenants.My question, is there a spreadsheet available that would help me determine rental increases?

Increase your financial IQ and build your team (CPA, Lawyer, Investment Agent) while you look and analyze deals.

A deeper market for the ownership interests and the increase in investor liquidity is expected to be accompanied by an increase in value. 

You can try the increased late fee. 

Are people just buying hoping they can juristically increase rents or hoping that the market will continue to go up in this town?

https://www.har.com/content/newsroom/Houston Real Estate Highlights in July: Single-family home sales rose 9.1 percent year-over-year, with 8,108 units sold;Days on Market (DOM) for single-family homes remained unchanged at 48 days;Total property sales increased 8.5 percent, with 9,559 units sold;Total dollar volume jumped 11.4 percent to nearly $2.8 billion;The single-family home median price rose 5.9 percent to $243,500, reaching a July high;The single-family home average price also achieved a July record, rising 2.4 percent to $305,910;Single-family homes months of inventory was at a 4.2-months supply, down fractionally from 4.3 months last July, but nonetheless at the highest level since August 2017;Townhome/condominium sales rose 6.1 percent, with the average price up 6.9 percent to $215,110 and the median price up 9.3 percent to $165,000;Leases of single-family homes fell 1.9 percent with the average rent up 5.6 percent to $1,916;Volume of townhome/condominium leases dropped 6.6 percent with the average rent up 7.7 percent to $1,666.