Re:renting out your house
We spent a lot of years renting while in school and getting established, and now live in an area with lots of rental units (duplexes).
My advice, for what it is worth:
1) choose your tenants carefully - do credit checks, background checks, criminal checks, get references, etc.
2) study all the laws around rentals - your rights and obligations and the renters rights and obligations EXAMPLE: in our area the landlord is required to assess damage and notify you if they are holding part/all your dd within 30 days after you move out. Pour last landlord was a lazy dumbass that never fixed things when notified, I didn't contact him re:returning our dd until AFTER 30 days post- moving out. He tried to bamboozle us and when we didn't acquiesce, he took us to small claims court (saving me the cost of filing! See, dumbass comment above). I knew the law, I won.
3) when we were renting, 1 month's rent was usually needed as the damage deposit - how much damage can you fix with that money (this may vary in your area)
4) we had a pet (dog), it can be hard for folks with pets to find rental properties - this may let you charge more if most properties in your area do not allow pets. If so, you will also get more applicants to pick from.
5) figure out what you include with rent ( gas, electric, w/d, water, sewer, garbage) and what you will require from tenants ( lawn mowing, snow removal, etc.)
6) will you let the tenants paint rooms to fit their tastes?
7) small claims court may be you only recourse with some tenants if you have a problem - but guess what? Even if you win, the court doesn't actually make them pay, you may just end up with them having a lien against them and never really being able to collect!
8) check up on your property regularly
9) how will you handle leases (monthly, 6 month, year long)?
Good luck, I am sure you can make this work for you.