This cashflow looks slim. 

For the first year i would be living in it myself so chances are slim of having issues.I would love to talk sometime about the area. feel free to contact me anytime, maybe we can meet up if you live in the area. 

It's been slim pickings in my local market lately! 

Also looking out of state because local is slim pickin's.

The deal might be a little more slim than initially estimated.

So that will definitively tell you if it's a legal 2 family or not. and I can tell you now that if the property is a 'non conforming' 2 family (meaning it's a legal 2 family but only because it's grandfathered in as it currently sits in a one-family Zone) then the chances of you getting it converted to a 3 are very slim. good luck.

My method was to drive by the properties and yes it takes time and see what was in play, and if it was a pretty house I knew my chances of buying were slim If there wasn't an invisible problem in existence and they would 98 percent of the time just list it with an agent.

The chances you do both effectively are very slim

I should write a book and take some caffeine pills and get all excited about it. maybe dress up like that guy with question marks on him that tells everyone how the government will pay for everything.

Jon, I agree with you that I have never had a contractor charge for a bid if I am the homeowner, however, in the context of this thread, it references getting bids on homes that an investor may or may not be the winning bidder on and as such, the chances of the contractor getting the work is slim to none, just ask any of the thousands of members here who play the numbers game (make 40 offers to get one under contract)