They sometimes charge extra for extra tests: like radon tests, a wood destroying insect test, etc.

Josh,Typically, cities will have a 'Non-conforming use' clause in their zoning ordinance, which determines how a building, if completely destroyed (by fire, flood, etc.) can be rebuilt, if it is in a zoning that does not allow for that use.

I live 40 miles away, so I called the owner of the biggest plumbing co in the city and he and 2 techs drpped everything to get to the property within 10 minutes of my call.I had put a garage outdoor access remote on the outside of the house.. they couldn't get in thru that because THE POWER WAS NOW OFF.Luckily i had put a coded door knob on the kitchen door that opens to the deck-- i gave them the code and they were inside instantly.The water heater was STILL SPEWING WATER full blast in a stream so strong it was hitting the second story ceiling and hitting the ELECTRICAL PANEL also located in the garage and that's what had knocked out the power .The plumbers immediately turned off the inside water main cutoffand sent me photos of the EMERGENCY SITUATION the pm so calmly let me know about by email an hour earlier.i fired the pm co that instant and got on the phone to start farm (my rental policy ins co) whiledriving an hour to the property.i also called the city's best WATER EMERGENCY REMEDIATION COMpany while en route.When i got there, the water was turned off ( finally)the drywall ceiling had fallen in, the light fixtures destroyed, the garage door open case was HALF FULL OF WATER and there were 1000s of mold blooms on every surface and hundreds of stacks of spiky growing black mold (looked like iron fiilings we used to play with in that game we all had as kids where u use a magnet and drag the iron filings around to put hair and a mustache on the bald guy cartoon photo) the mold spikes were 1.5" tall on the woot railings and stairs going into the house, on all of my beautiful built in wooden garage shelves--- what a mess-- like the streets of Beirut after the bombs went offand I don't have allergies -- but i could not even STAND inside the garage because the WET MOLD MILDEW SMELL was so strong it instantly gagged me and gave me a headache and i couldn't breathe.So here Ewe are on Jan 17 and now i know that the BEST rental dwelling policy dies NOT COVER MOLD REMEDIATION AT ALL ( so far $14,000) but it does cover water damage with a $2500 deductible...

They were there for 3 years and destroyed the place.

Local news stations are reporting roof failures, carport collapses, and business either temporarily closed or completely destroyed because of storm related damages.

It's in an area that has seen constant growth since Hurricane Katrina destroyed New Orleans and over the past 3 years it's been growing even more.

I would recommend you add your down payment, the cost of any materials that will be installed in the home and he cost to demolish and remove the remnants of the home if it is destroyed to the loan amount.

That is because your cost to repair and deal with problems will destroy your cash flow.

If you go to court the tenant might destroy the place.  

Coming from a background in finance, I know that I will, one way or another, be able to find either a single partner, or group of investors who aren't afraid to pull the trigger, and who are interested in actually developing land, not destroying it, and creating beautiful properties to be sold along with beautiful margins.I'm also curious to know if any of you have tackled projects similar to this (I know I haven't given out the secret ingredient), just speaking of land acquisition / development / selling properties, repeat.Thoughts?