DC is not the place to wing this or make emotional decisions.One important mindset shiftYour first goal is not max rent, it’s low stress and predictability, especially since you’ll be living on the property.

Some people are not able to handle this level of stress, so know yourself. 

Some property managers or agents will handle just leasing—showings, tenant screening, and placement—without ongoing management, which saves time and stress.

Deferred maintenance is almost always worse than it looks on pre-foreclosures, especially when owners are under stress and pushing repairs off.I’ve found the same thing — assuming worst case early keeps you honest, and getting access (even limited) before the sale is where real clarity shows up.

.❏ Checking with your property manager every quarter and asking whether he or she is seeing more people falling behind on their rent, more people unable to handle rent increases, or a decrease in tenant demand.DECREASING THE HEADACHE FACTORIf you want to make your portfolio grow, you need to be focused on finding and acquiring properties, not working out a payment plan with a struggling tenant.

It’s made staying organized throughout the year much less stressful, and tax season is no longer a headache.If keeping everything straight is your main challenge, it’s definitely worth checking out.

I'm cool with spending $300/mo to own this kind of asset, I just have to wrap my mind around my net worth increasing as my checking account decreases.

A real estate professional is a distinct designation from the IRS and there are certain rules/thresholds to do before you can call yourself a real estate professional for IRS purposes.You may want to factor in all of the above to see what the cost of cost seg will be and what your decreased tax liability will be for 2017 and what your refund will be from carrying back the NOL to 2016/2015.

The cash flow has likely decreased since the start of COVID in LA.

That all makes sense, and it sounds like you’re approaching it the right way, especially stress-testing occupancy and being conservative on insurance and cap ex.One thing I’d focus on as you narrow in on the second home loan is that you’re making two decisions at once: 1. what’s cleanest for the deal 2. what’s most resilient for the balance sheet long-termSecond-home financing is often the least friction up front, but it can quietly lock in some constraints around future leverage, basis, and exit flexibility, especially given the insurance volatility.