You just have to assess what the contractor is bringing to the table and whether a partnership makes sense or if it makes more sense to just hire them on as a contractor.Are they bringing deals to the table?

Tax assessment of both is 10,000 lower that the asking price.

I only had the addresses for the first few days so I ran my numbers based on the tax assessment.

We make sure that the lenders get regular progress reports, and send pics, etc.

At that time, they are going to assess the property owners a LOT of money for bringing city water to the property.

I'll definitely will keep everybody informed on my progress.

Just because there have never been any assessments, I wouldn't count on that going forward.I would try to figure up reasonable costs to maintain the land and parking lot to the standards I'd want, divide that cost by 3 and budget that amount (probably tack on 10-20%) for it each month.  

I am in the process of working through a short sale transaction.My real estate agent, who I have come to know pretty well, asked me to call the county and city assessors office to verify whether there are any "special assessments" on the property.

I have a GC I've worked w/ but he's often too busy on jobs to accompany me.Getting my real estate license isn't my priority now but I'd like to be able to effectively assess what type of work needs to be done.

Tell her you would be happy to, with her permission, visit a few on your own time and give her an honest assessment.