Back in 2014-2015 they were all foreclosures, bank owned, short sales etc.. that has all but dried up out there. 

Two, in the north you don't have to deal with rain in the winter and snow is dry (As long as you don't get berried in it...)Three, rehabbing in the winter will make you ready for the spring when all the potential buyers are coming out of the woodwork looking to buy a house.

SInce it's both, I would suspect the mixture control stem (whatever you call the thing that you turn the water on and off with).

We hoped to save dry wall, but under the piles of stuff was mildew that softened the walls/ceilings.

One thing I can tell you from being in the trades is that repairing 3 solid wood doors will not be cheap.My first thought was to take it out of the sec. deposit, but that stems from the fact that I cant charge for anything other than a lock fee in my state, no pet deposits, no application fees ect. ect. to be clear we can charge for repairs due to negligence, but it can be difficult to get paid depending on the class of tenant.  

Have you looked into short term rentals such as airbnb since you mention renting seems to be dry as well?

I kept dry puking and RAN FASTER.

I don't know what the chemical makeup is of the primer advertised to allow tiling over tile, but I am hoping it is a self etching substance that dries with a tooth.  

Is your basement dry?

You come back after it has had ample time to dry and still see the patched spot after top coat?