It may be best to partner with someone that has done one before or somehow is a local expert on lot splits.If you can add a bathroom into existing space on high cost property it can add a lot of value.  

I think Peter covered the best course of action.

I also have a friend that bought brand new construction, but had to shell out tens of thousands in repairs because the home wasn't built properly, the inspection didn't catch the issues, the builder didn't have a warranty on the property, and insurance didn't cover all the problems.

.)- All in Cost = Cost to build * Square foot  - Sales Price = All in Cost + (All in cost * 20%)* Covers contractor and soft cost on either fee based or cost+- Profit = (Sales price - (Sales Price * 7%))* - All in Cost   accounts for agent fees and closing cost- Initial List Price = Sales price + 10%      A buffer to test market absorption- Break Even being All in cost, point where everyone is paid except me. - List price is to test the market absorption at "x" price. 250k land + build.

You would  then alert your insurance to it and it will go up but you would be covered. 

But the stigma behind crime still exists, like any city, so it's important to screen tenants.

., $700) to cover this, or are there other strategies for handling utilities in this situation?

I would be looking to use hard money to cover the costs of renovations.

We recommend you get management contracts from several PMCs and compare the services they cover and, more importantly, what they each DO NOT cover.

@Chris Kay finding a quality, cost-effective contractor is extremely difficult:(There are thousands of contractors that are great talkers, but rarely perform within budget.Standard bait & switch is to lowball a bid, then once they get started all sorts of things "pop up" that somehow their bid didn't cover.