And always check social media for red flags and I agree with Vince, always meet a person.  

The licensed plumbers do not get permits for water heaters, I have never heard of one being red tagged solely for not having a permit so I do not get permits (and know no one that does) for swapping a water heater.  

From a legal standpoint, sure, it's not much different other than the paperwork and govt red tape.

I’ve seen too many new builds stall because no one spotted the red tape early.

In BR the Red Stick REIA and The Ring are great and in NOLA their is the Westbank Real Estate Investors, Northshore REIA and NOREIA.

I have seen people buy non-existant properties, bottom of lake (literally underwater), slivers of land too narrow or small to do anything, Army bombing range, expired leases, cell tower now removed, property with 30 year lease and prepaid rent for 30 years, condemned buildings, toxic waste sites, land under railroad tracks, cliffs, landlocked property, wetlands, flood zone, unbuildable property, endangered species habitat, ....I have three rules for buying at Tax Sale:1.

*Any red flags unique to the Pittsburgh market.I’m also hoping to connect with fellow investors, agents, or property managers who are familiar with the local market.

I paid for the subscription for a few months and drew my own custom Google maps areas and color coded them red/yellow/green based on a "grade" I felt came from a few metrics like crime/average household income/etcI also really like realtors dot com new maps, if you search for an address and click on the map and then go to the top left and choose the Value slider it will give you a nice color coded map of which areas of a neighborhood are higher valued.

As for evictions, here is a tip from the one "cash for keys" move out we've had: don't be afraid of a little vacancy; a prospective resident with every red flag flying proudly in the wind is not a good match, even if you're new to the MTR game (as I was :) ) 

I would be so deep in the red.