Roughly 4-6 months in (Let's say December), we settled up on water and lawn charges and wrote the landlord a check for ~$1,500 (~$1,200 water/ ~$300 lawn).

My lease says that they have to pay for all damage above normal wear and tear, and I have a form that specifies each charge.

Rentcafe.com states the average rent charged for a house this size is $840 a month.

2)  Good leases spell out 1) hourly charges past the move out day/time and daily charges thereof, and 2) hourly labor charges for cleaning. 

My lawyer is advising to convert the property to an LLC (at a $1K charge by him of course) and that will strengthen the case.  

If installing tile base, depends a lot on the complexity, can easily add another 5+ Most of the good guys are charging 700 in our areas for this, but will do these on the side. 

Based on my experience in the area and what he’s charging, his ROI figures don’t add up.At the end of the day, don’t trust everything you see or hear.

In other words, I can't raise rent to the current tenant, but if I get rid of my tenant and get another one it seems like I would be able to charge the current rates; not sure.I'm in a west Chicago suburb.Any word of wisdom is appreciated.Thanks!

It ranges for many different reasons.If the lender you are planning to use says it is going to charge you $7k-$8k then put that number in there.Though, I must admit that does sound high.

My wife and I are currently under contract on our first deal and things have taken an unexpected turn.