And they also are not 'open concept' but have small parlors and formal dining rooms, etc. 

I see people all the time talk about chasing the fire within and that's what I'm trying to do but don't quite know where to get started in an industry I don't have much formal training in.

Typically a home inspector might charge $400 to inspect a house, but that's because they spend several hours putting together an inspection report.Tarl said to keep the costs down, he told the inspector he didn't need the formal inspection report.

South of the border, rent control is rare.

Yes, Berkshire County is basically CT border all the way up to Vermont boarder on the west side of MA.

The formal eviction process will hurt the tenant with being able to find future rental properties, so they should equally be motivated to avoid that.

The few times i've had something similar, I just used to the process to formally get them out and retake possession. 

or wait until the formal notice?

If you prefer the formal process of going through a buyer's agent that early in the shopping process, let the agent know up front your timeline and your motivation or lack thereof for buying on that timeline. 

Since Maryland and VA are border states it might not be a problem.