But I try to balance that "more" with reasonable use (for the time period they're there).

For example, I've had a couple of 3+ bedrooms sit for a longer period of time because they only had one parking space available (and no on-street options nearby).

It cash flows without the utilities split but I am planning to hold onto for a long time so splitting the utilities seems to make sense.

If you want to combine two or more lesser sales into one higher purchase that is fine as long as your purchase meets the timing requirements for each sale.  

@Michael Overall, The length of time that a DST is open is going to keep you from doing this over time like @Jon Taylor said. 

If we can complete projects faster, we increase IRR and build trust.3) Market Risk- The longer it takes to complete a project, the more exposed you are to market fluctuations.This goes for all things Real Estate - BRRRRs, Flips, New Builds, Rehabs, etc.Real Estate is a wild ride I feel your pain, I've had this happen many times where the project is twice as long.

If you choose to go with a first time home buyer program, you would need to identify all the terms and advantage of that as MANY are available.

The biggest question you need to ask yourself is if you are doing this to afford a property you otherwise couldn’t afford or to save money period, that will lead to very different conclusions about where/if to buy. 

Those holding cost will certainly add up over time and kill any cash flow.

It took quite a good time (~6months) even with a property manager but finally found the renter after rent decrease by 200$.