What realistic scenarios should I expect for selling in 2026? 

Quote from @Logan McKay Zylstra: Property management isn’t about being strict or lenient.It’s about being predictable.Clear expectations.Consistent enforcement.No surprises.Predictability creates good tenants.We turn down 9/10 property managers after having discussions with them because of expectations.

What expectations should be documented when it comes to amount of marketing, outreach to buyers agents in the area and so on..

The remainder of the questions just really depends on your underwriting and knowing all of the variables:Appraisals can come in lower than you expected, but did you comp it right?

𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔 𝐔.𝐒. 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐁𝐮𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐬 & 𝐑𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭The U.S. housing market is slowly shifting toward a more balanced environment after years of buyer's insanity.  The FOMO effect was strong!Inve...

Make it clear that is the expectation and follow up.

But you can expect an HOA to throw off that budget.

@Peter Li The market gives, and the market takes away - expected price depends on what your expectations are.

So, owners mistakenly think price is the only differentiator – and look for a PMC like they’d shop for groceries☹We encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others by reading posts here on BiggerPockets from owners that picked a PMC solely by price and regretted it.We recommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Even if someone gives you a referral, do NOT make the mistake of assuming that just because a PMC met their expectations, they’ll meet your expectations.

Vacancies cost real money, and when things feel slower than expected, that creates stress.