Real estate in Virginia

[Michael Johnson]

I got a home in Dumfries, Virginia to get out of my apartment and had some friends move in that will be covering mortgage. This was to jump head first for me and just get a crash course in real estate. We've already put a fence up and have some other projects I want to add on the house that I'm exited for but I'm having trouble finding exact information I need before I start moving things along. 

1. Leasing, templates , Tax information regarding leasing, How I know if my dwellings provided are legal dwellings, and what are the benefits to me still living there. 

2. Who to call for certain rental regulations. Like certain ways a door should open relating to fire exit should I install one ( I have a split level home), the codes for adding things onto the house or what is allowed and where to get the permits needed if I do need anything. 

3. I also plan to install a gas fireplace to be more efficient overtime and was wondering who might have experience on that, like how I would find out if there is a gas line already running under the house I can connect to or how expensive it is to convert and set up my own tank outside. 

I'm looking for more detailed answers other than "call the city" haha but any help is greatly appreciated as I am too new to this to be picky. Thank you so much for any help! 

-Michael