I've been seeing properties with the description, " The buyer is responsible for obtaining the CCO, Smoke Cert. and/or all inspections required to close.

They are and can be defined by any or all the following, area, age, type of construction and finishes.

i mean to say, i don't mean your obvious occasional big purchases, the loan/tax/insurance payments, and/or all the tax that goes to uncle $am on ur short term flips.buy everyday or weekly expenses.for me lookin at my debit card $100 there and $200 there most every day of the week at home depot and sometimes as much as $900 in a single purchase (2 oversize carts); that's over $2,000 a week! 

In this way, I view the excess equity as an insurance policy in the beginning.3)Your property value will go up after you fix it and stabilize ... refinancing then allows you to pull most or all of your initial investment out if you like, and possibly with better financing terms since the property is fixed, stabilized, and "seasoned".4)By "seasoning" the investment first, you will have a much better idea what the actual financials are, and can therefore better predict how much debt burden it can support and still safely remain cash flow positive.Downside is you need the cash and it is locked in the property until you cash out refi, and it is not 100% certain you will be able to refi when you want and on the terms you want.

I plan to use a property management company for most or all of my properties, so I expect to use the leases drawn up by the property management company.

@Caleb Godsey Your numbers are correct:However, you are missing CapEx reserves (5-10%) - consider Repairs and CapEx at 10% of rent, your cashflow gets cut in half:Make sure to account for all these expenses when evaluating an investment: 1) Mortgage2) Mortgage insurance (PMI or MIP) or FHA Risk base3) Property Taxes4) City Taxes5) HOA (Home Owner’s Association) Dues and Fees and Assessments6) Insurance Property Hazard InsuranceFlood InsuranceEarthquake InsuranceUmbrella Insurance7) Vacancy Rate (usually 8% - the equivalent to one month a year, or 5-6% if multifamily and/or if experienced, if not use 8%)8) Utilities (you’ll have some or all of these if your tenant is not covering them and/or during vacancy) Water § Sewer § GarbageElectricityNatural GasPropane9) General Maintenance (usually 5%) Upkeep § LandscapingSnow removalRepairsNew Appliances10) Capital Expenditures (usually 5%, higher is the property is old and obsolete, less if fully rehabbed and all mechanicals and roof are new)11) Property Management (8%, even if you self manage, your time still has value and there might be a time when you'll want to be completely hands off or you'll not be able to do it, vacation, retirement, etc.)

What's the key governing principle about what documents you can use in real estate transactions and does a lawyer have to be involved in some or all cases?

One or all of the partners was always on vacation.

With up to 4 units you can get a FHA residential loan with 3.5% down payment, owner occupy and have rental income subsidize some or all of your mortgage.

@Tony MayoObviously we don’t know the whole situation or all of the numbers with this deal, but my guess would be that the property would be worth more to the neighboring company than anyone else.