It started with the "heartbreaking" single family houses, full of run down yards, overgrown trees, ceramic sewer pipes, leaking galvanized water pipes and Cochroaches throughout.

Is the yard full of cars and junk? 

So once you get to 5 units, most investors end up on the commercial mortgage side of a bank.And as he notes, from a brokerage standpoint, in my market, I see most 8 units or less exclusively on the MLS.  8-20ish units are a mix of MLS and Loopnet/Brokerage sites.  20+ units are almost exclusively listed by brokers that specialize in multi-family and you will not see their names on yard signs anywhere.  

Among the other things the tenant did not do the yard work for at least six month to a year and the yard is looking pretty bad.

Private STR home with private pool in fenced in back yard.

You will get an idea of the area, are the yards cut?

., I understand the law is the law, but the law is made to force folks doing much more than raking a yard or replacing a loose step to become a contractor who has insurance etc. 

Is it normal to see standing water under the side of the yard under the mulch?

I take the size of the yard into consideration with all my purchases.

Places that need new flooring, paint, a deep cleaning, some yard work and so on.