SWD is common (or Trustee's Deed in trustee states).

I have been warned recently by a more experienced investor that it is critical to inspect for lead and asbestos during due diligence as there could be serious health, legal, and financial risks to not doing so?

One common thing I've heard consistenly on the podcast is that to be successful you just have to be honest and open and not shady.

Water, Power & Gas are all independent services and each deserves to be considered separately IMO.I have common water, but separate power and gas already, but consider:water is relatively cheap and constant each monthpower can be very expensive, especially in an all electric buildinggas is not bad, until the winter monthsI looked into adding AC to my units and the equipment+install was the cheap part; the sky fell in for the electrical upgrade (5k/apt).   

Or both like me.One of the most common jobs is leasing agent.From my understanding New York is different than a lot of places, leasing agents are also real estate agents.

Having something in writing is always a good idea, especially outlining what is and isn't shared (e.g. common space, garage, outdoor space) with others.  

Looks like this property is separately metered but can't tell if there is a common meter or not.  

(They're common in some areas.) 

What is common is to get into a place and pay less than rent would be while getting some tax benefits and building some equity.  

In the Tri-Valley area, it is much more common to see 30/14/14.