My question is why are you looking at OOS? 

Quote from @Nicholas Klaene: Hello,I'm currently looking to buy my first rental.

This is even considering that my contractor paid for the quartz, I got a black friday deal on appliances (all in $1000), and my kitchen cabinet cost is under GC pricing due to my relationship with them. 

I've separated out electricity but not water (never heard of sewer being separated) and I've always had separate gas meters on my properties but have separated the heating system on one.

I'm finding when I look at a given property, I get inaccurate comps in two ways: 1st, a property will show up in the list as a comp to my subject property but have a REALLY low sale value; upon investigation I find that the property acutally hasn't sold in 10+ years but PropStream thought it was comp; 2nd, a property will show up as "Sold" in the MLS status, but all ownership and transaction history tab don't reflect the new data.

My first offer was $35K below their asking price, but they countered to bring my offer up $10K, so now we are at market value.

Never built in Houston before so take my feedback with a grain of salt but I'd put money on it being impossible to build a duplex from scratch for $125 a foot (including everything from drawings, engineering, permit fees, general conditions, labor, material, landscaping).Out here in AZ the builder cost is going to be $200 a foot at best, but add 20% on top of that for the client cost.

I purchased a property in Chicago in 2024 and pay $400 a month for my water bill (unmetered).

I’m just getting started in real estate investing and am looking to acquire my first investment property.I’d love to connect with like-minded investors, lenders, and mentors who can share insights or personal journey.

I've stayed within this niche moving forward which has helped me to focus and find deals easier due to my familiarity with the niche as a local investor.