Electricity and gas varies month to month, so why would you mix that in with the rent unless they are being charged a flat fee every month. 

Close to getting final approval, about 4 revisions, involving architect, civil engineer, arborist, gas line designer, and some other folks.

I am currently a full-time engineer with an oil and gas company in Corpus Christi, TX.

I purchased last month and just got my first electric and gas bill.

You are always going to have holding costs (electric, oil/gas, water, etc...).

The upper tenant doesn't even have the gas activated for whatever reason. 

Ready for a second deal, I have come across a private sell in a slightly sub-par area of town (I would guess C to C- neighborhood) close to the older down town/industrial district (I live in Hobbs, NM, an oil and gas town hugging the west Texas border).

This house was built in 1920 so it’s either they stuck with coal until gas lines were installed, they had above ground tank and they removed all the piping, or they removed the tank long time ago (town doesn’t have record of tank removal permit) or it’s somewhere under the front porch which is reinforced concrete porch.

Right now in particular, I'm currently fighting with the hot water tank & gas furnace, hoping to find someone who could check those out without me having to contact a major company to come out for a service call and then be upsold into purchasing a new unit.

Signing a docusign + creating accts for her with gas, water, electric, takes less a miniscule amount of time in comparison to even opening a HELOC, finding investment properties, etc.