However, I believe West Hollywood, along with Beverly Hills, have a city ordinance prohibiting door knocking (or more specifically, soliciting in general).

However, ultimately you will be responsible if you commit prohibited transaction in your IRA. 

Hi Mary,My real estate license prohibits me from discussing things like crime rates but there are a lot of resources out there.  

State law prohibits the management company from disbursing that money to an owner and also dictates that the money must be kept in a separate escrow account.  

I would guess a clause prohibiting that should be put in the lease?

Some tenants who like those are jewelry stores, photo store type place, postal type places, restaurants/bars with a prohibition type theme.You need to compare the rent bank is paying with current market rents to see if rent is at,above, or below current market.

The building is well maintained but I think it wasn't all updated with the latest wires so getting more electricity lines to the unit would be prohibitive. 

HUD has a good multifamily program or larg(er) dollar projects, and the terms are unbeatable, but the closing times are generally prohibitive as it can take 9+ months to close.Outside of HUD, your best bet is going to be local lender who is interested in deploying their funds in their lending footprint.

Are there any unique real estate laws in Houston that might inhibit/prohibit someone from investing in real estate over there?

That would create a prohibited transaction.