I’d suggest drafting a solid agreement upfront that covers everything—ownership percentage, costs (mortgage, repairs, utilities), how profit is split, and even exit strategies if one of you wants out.

If piti is $1100 and rents range from $1000 to $1200, conservative underwriting would use the lower of the rent range, we have $1100 rent - $1000 PITI - $120 PM  - $50 (vacancy) - $300 maintenance/cap ex - $50 misc (tax man, asset protection, book keeping, utilities that are not tenant responsibility such as for a slab leak, etc) is about negative $420/month. 

It was common to buy land for 10-20% of what it had been selling for just a year prior, sometimes even less.

Southern border of the land is Wilson Creek (a large, well established, full time creek with old growth trees)Approx 1 acre of non-recoverable flood zone along length of creekTwo small ponds on the property, which can be filled in to utilizeSmall neighborhood to East of property line with utilities ready and available for project Currently a couple of older homes and barn structures on property (100% liveable and well maintained)Wilmeth Rd is currently expanding down the block to a 4 lane road which connects to Highway 75 in McKinneyLarge developments are underway within a 1/2 mile to 3 miles out radius<4 miles to Costco, ChickFilA, WholeFoods, Cinemark, major hospitalAT&T Fiber and Atmos Gas at front of propertyA water well can be run, if desired, or tap into the city's water (currently on city water and has large main at front of property)A CE firm has drawn up plans for a small, 12 home, 3/4 acres development.

Acting like a broker dealer is scarily common.

I decided to give it a try and it is quite nice not to worry about utilities and tenant issues.

.  -- If the units are the same footprint, then why not just do 50/50 on utilities for each side and 100% when one is vacant.

You’ll reverse engineer top-performing properties and get title & description recommendations, discover rare amenities in your market, & utilize competitor’s reviews to convert more guests.My expertise is in increasing visibility in search engines (and lead generation for law firms, roofing companies, etc) and not the AirBNB/VRBO algorithms.

is the utility company threatening to shut off the water?

This was very common in 2008-2011 when values declined