If you have one of the major financial institutions (Fidelity, Schwab, Merryl Lynch, Wells Fargo, etc.) setup your plan then they as custodian will limit your investment choices to that of their offerings, usually stocks, mutual funds and bonds.

And then have a separate policy just for liability.That would normally make no sense because it's usually cheaper to bundle things. 

Unless the current owner pulls out statements showing their balance to you and/or unless the trustee has published the bid amount (Which is usually the total debt owed or a formula of the total debt owed), you won't know what's owed.

Our properties are inspected by code enforcement at least every 5 years (Usually every 3) so it keeps us inline as well as gives us a level playing field.

Regrettably there is usually a notable lack of first person proof to support their position.

maybe get a lawyer to give u a contract to purchase (usually free via the states RE association) in exchange for usimg him for closimg

That can be more risky but the rewards can be greater.Is the income per month usually greater ?

As an investor you want to maximize your returns which is usually putting down enough skin to generate a solid rate of return.

For low cost, traditional mortgages are usually cheapest.

That usually translates to low cost low touch.