There is water, sewer, gas, and electric in the street out front.  

The duplex was cute, cozy, and affordable for the two of us but with a third person it does get tight.

The reason I was going for an HOA is because they take care of the roof when it falls in and the water heater when it gives way.

My final tip is an easy one, drink water!

The $1000 should cover the day to day maintenance items that pop up (water leaks, equipment/appliance repairs, etc), but what it won't cover are the big ticket CapEx expenses (different than maintenance) that you should be budgeting for each month (i.e. a roof being replaced every 20yrs, etc).

Best case scenario, everything is split out (ex. water, electricity, heating and etc.)

Get a price, test the waters, Etc.3) Don't build at all right now.

I ended up going to the city and checking with storm water management specialist, he said the storm water is flowing through that lot and if I build I have to maintain it to allow the water to flow, otherwise in case of good enough rain entire neighborhood can be flooded and angry neighbors may sue me 🙂So I passed

Mine has roof, floors, hvac, appliances, hot water heater, bath and kitchen remodel, etc.

Called HUD and they said as long as it offers potable water and is a true full bathroom with shower toilet and sink, it doesn't matter which floor it's on.