My personal residence once had the meter in the garage ... only in this case, the meter was on the outside of the house before the garage was attached.Moving the meter to outside is pretty easy, depending on how far you wish to have it from the existing shutoff and panel.

If I were to buy the 57 yr old comp house and decide to add Central A/C and replace the paneling with sheetrock and other updates, would the price for sq. ft stay the same or would it add value to the house?

Probably will need to move the electrical line and upgrade the panel.

, there was essentially no grounding from the electrical panel, not to mention the whole house (including the bathrooms and kitchen) had carpet.

CB main panel unlabeled.3.

Any existing fuse panels will likely need to be upgraded to circuit breakers.Insulation is generally poor.

So when you show up with comps illustrating garbage properties, expect the panel to ask you how you selected your comps, and if you made any improvements.They will ask about your rents.  

I have a large garage behind 1 of my propertiesthat I keep for my shop , (lots of toys with engines) I have a submeter just before the panel , every month I read the meter and reimburse the tenant for the electric ..

That old paneling is really ugly.

Interior six panel hollow slab doors are even cheaper now. $17 each - all sizes.