Secondly, it seems like it would be a good business practice to give a user a chance to contest derogatory remarks on their file, similar to how one does on their credit report.

Check the crime reports, decide what's your lifestyle and then jump in.

[Document when the leak likely occurred, when the tenant reported it or when you discovered it, when you fixed it.

how about a $1  thru experian  http://www.experian.com/credit-report-partner/inde...

Along the way, I will report the tenants' good payment history to Experian’s RentBureau service using a rent collection service.

@Patrick Plummer in a former life I practiced in US Tax court, I strongly suggest if you qualify for the solo 401k go that route, and roll your ira into the solo 401k it is much more flexible in real estate transactions, and the compliance cost and reporting requirements are much less.  

The reason I am so concerned is that The city has already forced me tear down one other building on the property which was reported (apparently) by a neighbor.  

If you get a mold report that identifies several issues in the home, you could use that as leverage to bring down the purchase price.

It did state on his report "if concerned contact contractor" but we weren't concerned because he assured us it was "no big deal" now here I am with leaky pipes lol.

I guess without soils report or knowing how deeply the unsuitable soil is, there is no definitive answer.To the OP, vinyl windows with double glass and argon filled is a good option here in SoCal, I have installed a few of them, I only use Milgard on my installs, they offer high quality and high performance ratings.