Don't let people scare you away from Tijuana with WW3 talk. 

I’ve heard horror stories of people who have to tear apart their house because of work that wasn’t permitted.I’m wanting to buy another home and rent this out as a duplex but I’m worried that if I apply for a rental license or anything that’s dealing with the city, they might find something that’s not permitted and we’ll be stuck with a hefty bill.

@Sam Liu This is a common concern for people who are looking to do 1031's.

Taking that money out and anything that leads to more people using the equity from their homes and reduces the friction to that process is not good in the long run.

I know that most people say to have everything fixed before the closing date, but if it is in writing and signed prior to closing, is it that big of a deal?

Do not go and invest out of state because people come into the forum and try to convince you to work with them on these goals (so ridiculous), you aren't ready for that and you have a good foundation somewhat locally.Your best bet, if you can't move, is to keep investing outside of New Jersey and stay close to your current property.

However, also don't forget to budget for turnover costs and capex reserves too, which many people ignore. 

Most people that are trying to forge ESA documentation do not know the rules.

Either you have absolutely no ability to find competent people, or for some reason competent people don’t want your business.  

There are a lot of people who actively flip and the best wholesalers who actually have good deals (not all wholesalers are created equal) have a lot of buyers looking at their deals too.