and 2) would waiting for the tariff war to abate and for demand to slow affect pricing, or are these typically ratcheted up with no hope of correcting substantially?

just post the details of your deal here and you will get lots of responses. 

@Basit Siddiqi Thanks for your thorough response, he are some answers:1) 4 shareholders2) One state- in MD3) Great question, I'm asking that tomorrow!

@Kevin Romines Thank you so much for this response.

There are 5 forms you should have signed/received from your Contractor before you start the project:Independent Contractor AgreementScope of Work DocumentPayment ScheduleForm W-9Proof of InsuranceIndependent Contractor AgreementThe Independent Contract Agreement outlines the terms, obligations and responsibilities of both parties to the Contract.  

We are also demmed the condo owner so we are responsible for mainiting any common areas and also have to carry a HOA insurnace.

If you are buying it with the tenant in place, you will get regular homeowner's insurance and then be responsible to evict the current tenant. 

Thank you for your response. 

But if you've bought it subject to the mortgage then you might be able to sign an affidavit that you have taken full responsibility for the payment.

Our thinking is to do buy and holds in a place where we can pay responsible family to manage it.