Check the contract and see if there are any obligations that they aren’t fulfilling (do they have to send specific reports each month that they aren’t doing) that could be grounds to terminate without a penalty.

I'd like to understand the opportunity of keeping our current home (financials below) as a rental and see if that makes more sense than selling. 

This allows you to have all the financial security and easy access to your cash, which real estate does not, as well as affording you much higher returns than simply having dead equity.The same would apply to paying down your own home mortgage, all you save is the mortgage interest. 

The one way I know to get code enforcement out and do an inspection is to file a complaint on a property and then the code enforcement department is obligated to address the complaint.

My name is Willie Francis and I'm  a newbie to real estate investing, I’m working a full time job for the Railroad looking for financial freedom thru RE my goals are investing in Rental Property in the Houston area.

You will need a personal financial statement and provide two years of your personal tax returns.

*I am not a financial professional. 

If the rules allow a bad title report to give you good cause to renege on your title obligations, then no, you should wait until you win the property to do a title search.

If they decide to break the lease and leave early, you have an obligation to try and find a new tenant so the original tenant can be relieved of their obligation.

I was even just listening to some of the first podcasts today -i think it was show 11 or 12 or so  - on private funding through seller financing and how they highly recommended not even approaching the subject of financials until they had met and talked at least 3-4 times prior.