although they probably know its unbuildable so why buy it just use it.the person who owns it I would bet dollars to donuts bought it at a tax sale.. and now is trying to sell it... it was on the Sonoma county tax sale being held by bid for assets but it was removed.. ( taxs probably paid).Not sure how you found this as your in San Jose and this is 90 miles north in Santa Rosa.The only play I could see here is contacting the neighbors on either side.. see what if anything they would pay for it... deduct a reasonable profit for yourself then make offer to current owner accordingly.

I've been looking at properties and crunching numbers but I'm held back by fear: do I even know the numbers, the market, the neighborhood, etc...

Sump pumps were installed in 2 locations in metal culvert tubes in gravel, with holes for water to drain into. 

But I'm also held to a standard of ethics that would fry most "self-taught BP wholesalers". 

From what I understand there are a couple avenues to repair:New rubber/ metal liner Tearing the box gutters out altogether and extending the eaves to install seamless guttersBypassing the gutters but leaving them in place and attaching seamlessAm I missing something here or is there no economical way to get this done?

When Houston corrected a few years ago, class A occupancy rates and rents really got hit as $100K oil jobs fled while B/C vacancy and rents have held up pretty well.  

@Michael BowserSo as far as a entry lock to their apartment you are responsible to make sure it's properly working,I wouldn't trust them to do it or expect them to do it right.If if was damaged, then charge them for repair.It's a huge security issue something I personally wouldn't let go 1 day.If they cracked the frame then OMG was it a break in,, did they make a police report,, if not charge them.Cracked frames are not just a put a piece of duct tape on it,could mean a whole new jamb.The extended fix-it metal door jamb things are ok for temp job, but look terrible and is not what was there before.Take photo's, charge them, replace, not repair. 

It depends on the company, maybe, but I doubt that every bidder was held as a back up.

It's a game until the unit passes, your monthly rent will be held until it is reinspected again and passes.. 

Appreciation should be forced and held.