Ive had rental property before (and I was an out-of-state landlord) so what I did was hire Century 21. They handled everything from advertising (keeping the house occupied), credit checks, repairs, lawyers, the whole nine yards. The cost for their services? 10% of whatever the monthly rent was. It was fantastic. I rented that property for four years that way before one of the tenents made me an offer I couldnt refuse. I highly recommend you look into a professional service. Just imagine the headache you will personally have to deal with if a deadbeat gets up in there.