An engineer sent by a cost segregation firm can find a lot MORE components to bonus-depreciate than you can estimate yourself.

Haven't found one I aligned with very well yet, but have gotten some good advice from some of them.Some of the other ones don't really take people under them, I did try that too with a few of them, but definitely gotta look into that more.

Appreciation is a essential component and could be detrimental if you don’t buy right.Meaning, CapEx expenses could wipe away cash flow on a lower class asset and cause your first investment to be stressful.Now, you must ensure it cash flows upon your exit.

The majority of our building component is the club house and underground utilities so we're able to maximize 15 year components.  

We had discussed creating an LLC and going that route, but we couldn't align on agreed upon equal expenses: how do we share a big Capex issue like a new roof, etc?

Using Zillow to market listings and hiring a property manager to market and manage property are two very different thingsThis is a solid breakdown, and I agree with you on the suburban vs. urban distinction.What I’ve seen aligns closely with that lower turnover class A/B suburban assets tend to lend themselves better to self management, especially when the owner is local and systems are tight.

But those benefits only matter if the asset performs comfortably from a cash flow and risk perspective.There’s no universal right answer here - only structures that align better with your risk tolerance, liquidity, and long-term objectives.Also, great job laying out both the physical and financial variables.

In the meantime, make sure your pricing is truly aligned with today’s market, refresh the listing photos if needed, and respond quickly to inquiries since renters are shopping multiple options. 

Separate execution risk from valuation riskWhen ARV is reasonable, the real risk becomes:Permitting delaysContractor performanceTimeline managementThat’s where having scope, GC alignment, and buffers matters most.4.

If you’re actively buying in Houston or surrounding areas, I’d love to learn your buy box so I can stay aligned with what serious investors are actually acquiring.I also currently have a couple of properties under contract and would appreciate any insight on breaking out of the Facebook dispo cycle (beyond LLC searching, which can feel a little daunting and impersonal).