We recently had a tenant call code on us for him having roaches and our lease says tenant is responsible for pest control.  

Awesome advice @John Hixon, I also sometimes use listsource to pull the last 6 months of 100% equity, absentee owners in a certain zip code.

The best part is you'll be the only offer on the table for consideration, so your chances of getting it accepted are much higher :-)CASE STUDY: 1139 Clinton Rd, Sacramento, CA 958251139 Clinton Rd is a duplex in the 95825 zip code near the Arden Fair Mall and Sac State.

Call the code enforcement officers at the city planners office and ask for an officer to come inspect the property to make a determination of the legality of the property as a whole.Do not close escrow with firm proof in writing that the home is 100% up to code.Don't get bullied by agents or anyone else to proceed without proof.

But fortunately, the code enforcement officer confirmed that the permit for the front door was also the permit for the whole unit.

The zip code 30032 and 30030 are the "hot areas" right now, tons of new construction.

There are some better areas in the zip code (the ones that border on Cleveland Heights and South Euclid) but you would definitely have to be VERY familiar with the area to know whether this property is in the better part of the city of East Cleveland.

Sometimes units are allowed because they are "grandfathered" into the code (built before the law made illegal), but this is going to be a local issue, and probably not something you can get a definative answer about in an online forum like this.If you're worried about insurance disallowing, why don't you call and ask a couple companies for a quote - if you explain the details, they should be able to tell you if it is not insurable.

This list would contain the zip code and corresponding name of the municipality.

I am in R4 zoning, which does not rule out STR's in almost all cases of municipal code I have looked into.