Mohit,I am in a similar position in regards to being outside of the country.I have chosen areas close to Universities as a revenue generator and an exit strategy.Even if the city or town once had financial difficulties, that is the not necessarily the case for your business as you decide which market demographic to chase.A city that has gone financially bad may be good business as they may try to get rid of their inventory of social housing.Look deeper into your business plan for what you want to get into and what you want to get out and what is your exit strategy.Best of luck

It goes a lot deeper than the assessor's roll, though.

Just dig a little deeper looking for potential trouble.

There are lots of nuances to both options I presented above, so if either sound attractive, you'll need to dig deeper into them before moving forward.

I am diving into a High End Waterfront Condominium Development Project.  

I'm not sure of your price range, but if you're looking for deals, I'd suggest looking deeper into JC, Union City, North Bergen, West New York.

Unless you're the type that thrives on "diving right in, and seeing how it goes" - then more power to you.Regarding the main question of your post...   ...fee...   ...yes, that amount is COMPLETELY in line with the scope you describe. 

I suggest you distill your list down to a very manageable five (5) or six (6) because you can drill deeper with a small list. 

Well now I'm diving in to the really noob questions.

I've lived in Brooklyn my entire life and regret not diving in and buying real estate much sooner.FHA is really you own option on a 2 family property if you're putting less than 15% down.