I am trying to buy a duplex and I have talked to the owner (built rapport) and got info from the city tax records, county clerk and google earth street views of the property plus neighbor properties.  

There are regulations to follow from the feds, state, county, city, the broker you work for and any MLS you belong to...

I'm currently looking to buy a nice "two family property" as specified by the city assessor website.

The rental market in the med/small city I reside in is strong with a good outlook. 

Make sure you job is stable, you have reserves, your credit is where it should be, you do your diligence on the city to ensure it has staying power, you do your diligence on the property, estimate costs correctly, etc.

I've tried using City-Data and some of the federal websites.

My name is Roland T Craddolph, and I live in the Greater KC area. I am completely new to the real estate investing world, and looking forward to learning more about it.  I am a Business Process Architect at Commerce B...

So I'd check with city code book and see what's required,, all that humidity has to go somewhere,, and inside isn't where it belongs.Even if it was a private home,, the amount of moisture staying inside is bad for your house structure,, mold issues, paint peeling, rot, over time it will become a bigger problem

There is only street parking, which is partly to blame for only 8 units being full I believe.

Our neighborhood has had a ton of new construction in the last 5 years, adding about 40 on my street and the next over from the 10 that have been around for awhile.