This document will then allow you to approach the upstairs tenant without seeming to take sides.These actions will essentially keep you neutral in the situation. 

If so you can charge tenants a reasonable flat fee for electricity over and above the financed amount that provides you a ROI and tenants electricity that results in either a savings or cost neutral option that is better for the environment.

The reason being the black granite can appear dirty if not clean, whereas something win a neutral tone with variation can disguise crumbs and dust.

Without knowing if your water is good quality - acidic or neutral, high iron, etc - and the fact that it serves 20 units, I would probably start planning to replace it.

Discriminatory Effects Liability and Use of Criminal History to Make Housing Decisions A housing provider violates the Fair Housing Act when the provider’s policy or practice has an unjustified discriminatory effect, even when the provider had no intent to discriminate.Under this standard, a facially-neutral policy or practice that has a discriminatory effect violates the Act if it is not supported by a legally sufficient justification.

Rental income is ordinary income which is taxed at the taxpayer's marginal tax bracket rate whether the rental property is held in his own name or in a passthrough entity.As a general rule, the passthrough entity is tax neutral, so there is no tax advantage to be gained by holding rental property in a passthrough business entity.

Very likely to be cash flow positive but tax neutral.

Pretend you are renting from yourself - you say you're paying that much now anyway, so paying that makes you cash-flow neutral from that perspective; at some future point, I assume you'll be having somebody else in there, so you'll get a rent payment then.Then when you analyze it, the cash-flow from the other 2 units will be what you can count on so long as you contribute your portion too.

Tell them that if they still wish to have the place painted you will hire a licenced contractor to do the work, to your specifications (neutral colours), and that it will be at the tenants expense. 

Thanks for making me feel better about the water runoff...what you say makes a lot of sense to me, but I didn't want to just go with my gut...it's nice to hear that from a neutral party.