He has no safety net so I don't think its wise to take the risk because if he did a deal, lost disability and then since hes brand new to REI lets say it takes a while until he gets his next deal I just want to help advise him best!

Prioritize your financial stability.

For the most part its just health and safety items, which are items we should have remedied anyways.As someone else mentioned, biggest thing to avoid is having the house tagged as vacant which the city will do if it sits empty for too long (handful of months, grass not cut, etc).

I typically build in an inspection contingency into my offers (yes this reduces my competitiveness of my offers, but its also a safety net to protect my bottom line).

I do plan to buy a property with 30% to 50% off and have it "acts" as a margin of safety.

Gov. mandates, laws, regulations, these are tools to control WHAT the product/service is, think safety focused. mandating no lead in toys, or fall-arrest gear for roofers, things like that, THAT is where it works. 

The truth is, if you can execute, BRRRR can work in all of those cities so it's a matter of preference - whether you prioritize cash flow or appreciation, price range, if you know anyone, school zones, etc.

Balance sheet and depository relationships (some banks requiring upwards 10% of loan amount) are being prioritized over merits of the deal/collateral.

Replacing a sewer lateral is easily a $7500 repair; it's probably closer to $10k, and personally I would have prioritized it over t+p. 

And in many cases this may be warranted as health and safety issues may be present.