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Has anyone ever made money on real estate rentals? After subtracting all you can, and factoring all grief, anxiety and angst with no shows, repairs, damages, commissions AND lost gains in the stock market, it seems like a stupid investment for people not having been successful in their previous career.
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Yes, since I bought my first property in 1968, a four unit apartment building on Capitol Hill in DC for $28,000. Actually, I have been happily living on income from my rentals since I retired in 1994 at the age of 52.
Way back when I used Lasser's income tax guide and filed my own tax returns for a few years. I was meticulous about recording every expense as well as all income. My returns soon became lengthy and tedious prior to computerization so I started using accountants. Over the years I have had a few accountants quit on me. lol. When Turbotax first came out I played around with it but at that time it did not have all the features I needed. It probably does now but I have relied on CPAs since early on although I make sure to follow tax law changes. They have been worth every penny and more. I recommend a landlord find a good CPA who knows the ropes about rentals.
Over several years my father eventually acquired nine rental homes in the 1940s and 1950s while I was growing up. I was the slave who took care of the lawns and cleaned up and painted after moveouts. I learned a lot from that.