The Owner should be paying the utilities unless otherwise specified in advance.

The PM collects the rents, pays the majority of the bills, and gives the owner what is left over.

Besides my current rent, I still have to pay an additional $1~2000 for the mortgage, etc.Pros:Better financing rates than for investment propertiescan manage it myself to save the PM feehaving my own place without worrying about rent increasesCons:May only afford a small townhome or apartment, not sure if I still want to live there after 5 yearOption 2: Investing in Out-of-State Multifamily PropertiesI could use my cash to invest in several multifamily properties out of state and use the cash flow to cover my rent.Pros:Potential to spread risk across multiple propertiesThe cashflow can cover my rent, maybe have extra leftCons:Additional costs for property managementLimited potential for appreciationHave no experience in managing OOS property, and I am afraid it will be annoyingI’d love to hear your thoughts or any advice you might have.

I found out from the seller that 2 of the units pay through cash app, 2 are on Section 8, and the rest they pick up in cash.

I do not pay a thing.I have the borrower pay for it.A lot of people use Doss or Geraci. 

I have not been able to get ahold of him in the past few weeks and he has made no effort to reach out to me with a plan to pay his past due rent.

We have a reasonably new tenant who's had several repair issues since she moved in back on July 1. She had issues with her kitchen faucet leaking. We repaired it at no cost to her. About 2 weeks ago, she contacted us ...

So for the upfront costs (e.g. Option Fee, Security Deposit, etc) can you do it with no money out of pocket? Is it advisable to do it with no money out of pocket? If it is what is the workflow to find the funding?

Don’t pay down early.  

On a fixed mortgage, i could pay extra payments (or a one time lump sum payment) and apply it towards principal.