But if you take advantage of them, they'll back out from underneath you and leave you hanging.  

For most of us every deal we've bought required plenty of tedious work at the computer and had plenty of deals that we thought looked great only to find there was something hidden underneath upon further inspection.I wouldn't worry too much about always avoiding HOA. 

Manufactured vs prefabricated - year built determines if it meets codes - look in water heater or underneath chassis and take photos as you need the manufacturer name, license number, tags, and any permits.

I would break even buying a condo in the 3 major cities I valuated with 50% down, so that doesn't feel like trading up.Should I purchase another couple pieces of land or perhaps a small house that is already connected to sewer and electric in order to more easily build ADUs on, assuming I can avoid soil, geo, topo? 

I have a single family rental that has a groundhog living and digging tunnels underneath the house.

@Kris Cole - you can typically find that information underneath the MLS listing, if it is even listed on the MLS. 

Leach fields are sized on how the soil perc tested and the size of the tank.

For sewer, if there are no sanitary sewer lines, which is common in the country, you will need to have the county health department come and test the soil for a "perc test" that will tell you if your soil is suitable for leach fields that will slowly decontaminate wastewater from your home.

It's plaster embedded with wire underneath.

(Example: Pink wall tile all around the bathroom and a certain floor pattern = original bathroom and lead pipes underneath have not been replaced).