I expect that I may have excessive damage on this home as well. 

As raising rents often comes with an increased vacancy exposure risk with renewals, it may not always be the best strategy.

Many PMs ask for this in their agreements to reduce their own liability exposure.

When a tenant moves out, transfer the deposit back to Checking so it's ready to apply towards expenses or refund the Tenant.If you end up with excess funds in the Checking account, I recommend you transfer it to a third account designated explicitly for future investments.

Larger brokerages sometimes are in need of administrative work, which could earn you a steady income while also getting exposure to the field. 

The Only other deductions that I have right now are $154 for unpaid water bill, and $45 for the minor repairs mentioned (doorbell, blinds, shower).Questions for the group:Does $540 seem excessive for a cleaning charge, given the situation?

The least states:"Tenant shall pay a "late charge" not in excess of five (5%) percent of the amount in arrears for each month the arrears remain unpaid if any Rent is paid more than ten (10) days after the due date thereof, to cover the extra expense involved in handling delinquent payments.

I find that putting a utility cap in the lease agreement they sign and calling their attention to it really helps make them more aware that they'll have to pay for excess usage so, fortunately, I haven't had to actually bill anyone yet, but the language is there if I needed to. 

First, most investors and owners of real estate related businesses are in one or more of the following situations1- they’re unable to duplicate their expertise that drives the ROI and they are at their personal max capacity as to time2- they’re obtaining high ROI by use of excessive leverage 3 - they’re obtaining high ROI by taking excessive risk4- they hit correct timing in the correct market, and this is not necessarily repeatable with any probabilityIn order for an investment or business to scale, we need the ROI (on a risk adjusted basis) to be sufficient to cover a PREMIUM risk adjusted return to passive investors; all expenses of managing the assets and the business, and a significant return to the “sponsor” providing compensation to him making the work, risk and time worth while. 

Quote from @Brandon Croucier: The loans are available but nobody wants to do them.There always seems to be something wrong with the properties, as lenders we just can't make enough $ for our time.9/10 Borrowers also complain about the "excessive fees" for the loan amount.If you are okay with paying 8k in closing costs then the loan is available.