If this rural Georgia, you will also have less options to billback utilities (or rather you can billback but the tenants might not pay you).Unless the seller provides financing, what lender does the seller expect you will get financing from based off these shoddy financials?

I would be in the utility company asking who I needed to to get the info. 

The City of Independence stated that they have been trying to get USREEB to fix the issue for almost 2 years & I was never even notified of such issue.The tenant moved out Aug 2017 & the property management company kept charging me utilities upwards of $400 when the property was vacant & did not/could not provide me proof or answer why.The bottom of the kitchen sink cabinet was missing & had fungi growth that was never cleaned and replaced.

Since my fiancé is not on this mortgage, could she purchase a piece of property and utilize the easier lending for a first time home buyer?

Selling a piece of land with utilities to the site, zoning use approved, scraped and cleared land, etc. is very different then selling a piece of land with an old house on it for a tear down and lot had to be cleared and graded.As a commercial developer if a seller wants a quick sale then it will be a low cash offer.

They include loan payments, taxes, insurance, utilities, and any other costs that occur during the Rehab period and up until the property is fully rented.  

I am going to put an offer on a bank owned REO, but the issue is that all the utilities, i.e. heat, water and electricity have been shut off.

Should I focus on using only the cash I have for the investments or utilize the HELOC as well?

Remodels closer to downtown on older homes have ashpalt-shingle roofs.Just an opinion, but unless you're doing something very custom, try to stick to what the neighborhood does and do not let your personal affinity for materials cloud your judgment on what the masses actually want.

Trying to tile a custom shower.