-The house Is in New York has- he has a fire extinguisher company and won't list it because he actually services many of the real estate companies and is afraid to favor one or the other and inturn lose a client- he has nine houses in Pennsylvania - original loan was 660k 760k if I remember correctly - has paid 250k- has all floors ( basement, 1st and 2nd) rented only top floor has a lease total rent colle is 5500- supposed market value is 1.1 million - he's willing to take 960k- might be open to terms since he's already renting.As long as he keeps the title-sounds like the house doesn't need many repairs but i have a friend that is a contractor and he can Help me assess any repairs Hes a savvy new yorker so  I rather give him options instead of just 1 cash offerCan anyone help me figure this out ?

Unless its like the very top school district etc.. and Austin pricing is basically West coast pricing nothing cheap about Austin.. 

HVAC, plumber, electrician are the top priority.

If you are selling it you would want to make all of these repairs (and more) anyway to get top dollar. 

Makes sense since the 2nd & 3rd floors were warm, but the ground unit for the first floor they said worked, they just topped off the Freon.

A way that I think I could really come out on top is by living in a garage and renting out the main rooms.

When looking at homes for rent, understand those top level penthouses and attic apartments will get very hot in the summer months.

Installed granite counter top and managed to save original cabinets, refinished floors, added in unit laundry which I think made a huge difference.

@Lou Vigil I agree with @Ryan Detig that Darryl Ford is fantastic.

Ditto what the others have said (usually tenants pay their own utilities), and require them doing so in the lease (especially if the house has gas on top of electric and water).