Without proper permits, there’s a chance the city may request you to revert any non-compliant additions (like the extra bathroom) to align with code standards.When it comes to refinancing, banks tend to look closely at the property’s legal compliance.

Auctions are quite possibly the worst place to buy if you want to avoid repairs.

As mentioned, you probably have to skip condos, and you REALLY want to look up the local laws AND the HOA CC&Rs. 

I am hoping to find an opportunity to help an established Investor with any administrative tasks, social media, or marketing in exchange for a chance to learn.

I had another person try to bargain me down to $1700/month, and said she was moving out of her dad's house and so needed room to store boxes in the extra bedrooms. 

It might be a value-add for prospective tenants to know there is a mechanism in place to leave early.

They might be able to tell you why and help you move it up the search results for a while to help.I agree that lowering the pricing could be a mistake.

My initial thought is to advise them to continue to offer the fee to avoid alienating buyer agents, especially if this is how buyer brokers are creating their short lists to share with clients.

Glad to have you as a part of this awesome community and congratulations on your investment! 

Also, Padsplit will want you to eliminate any dining room, den, etc to add more bedrooms.