I personally feel that this window provides a good hedge without being too expensive.

Additionally, ATCP 134.05 says that if the tenant provides a consumer credit report from an agency that compiles and maintains files on consumers on a nationwide basis and it is less than 30 days old, the landlord may still run a credit check but at its own expense.When I inquired with the company, they replied: "These laws are in place to ensure that you, as a landlord, are not profiting by incentivizing multiple applicants to apply when you have no intent to rent to them.

Both @Nathan Gesner and @Lauren Stark have provided valuable insights on this.One potential path for you is to join an established team to gain experience.

Contact the utility provider and get a historical average based on the last year of use.

Any lender should be able to easily do a HELOC for you (provided your credit is OK), but a local credit union will likely give you the best deal. 

That is often a matter of opinion and will depend on the attitude of your municipality.Most municipalities do not require neighborhood approval, but will offer the public opportunities to provide input which will be considered.

I can only speak to Milwaukee, but on average the three distressed properties I have purchased over the past ten years have appreciated an average of 200% all while providing steady cash flow.  

They may be bluffing and may not do anything, but Id prepare myself.

My intention is not to buy the sellers problem but to provide a solution.

Private equity firms seem to favor larger operations with scalable systems, while smaller mom-and-pop firms are often acquired by local players or regional operators looking to expand their footprint.If you’re looking for actionable intel, reaching out to brokers specializing in the sale of PM firms could provide useful leads.