I imagine there may be steps to take with the city upfront to determine if in fact the ground on the lot can be built on, but some general guidance or tips on best place to start and what to expect throughout the new construction process in Buffalo.

With the upcoming expected rate cuts making real estate "more affordable", I believe this will unlock many buyer's who've been waiting on the sidelines.

I know very little about legal precedent but I'd expect the major meter manufactures (selling into the utility space) to be well incentived to challenge these items best they can, and they have money.Here are the issues, and the reasons that the difference between an air forced system and a boiler/hydronic system are not meaningful for this discussion (ie efficacy issues of sub metering exist for either when method of measurement is measuring heat at point of delivery):In either case, the blower (or pump for a boiler) is the method of 'moving' either air (central air) or water/glycol or equivalent (boiler etc). 

I fully expect several months until I see any return especially in this market, so I'm not afraid to tie up cash in that way.

Expecting a pick-up for January 1st lease expirations.

It's unreasonable to expect the PM to drive 90 minutes to look at every job before sending a contractor.

Hopefully you’ve increased rents and your above expectations. 

That is huge that you need to have some idea on what the rehab will cost.You should not have to pay a contractor to give you a bid - most will do a courtesy bid for you or ballpark estimate to start but if you do not use them then do not expect another freebie later on. 

Most municipalities have different mix-use categories which dictate the precise commercial use that's allowed.A few additional observations on mix-use assets and how I approach them (1) they are generally more difficult to finance than multi-family assets so expect lower leverage terms even if the property performs just as well if not better than a multi-family property and therefore price this into your acquisition (2) I focus on mix-use assets where at least 80% of the income is generated through the residential component.

I am casually looking in 2 markets away from San Diego but I am not expecting to achieve the return that I have historically achieved in my local RE investments.