I will not disclose my beliefs as I know that is a very touchy subject these days but needless to say our sights on the government were the same.

Is the utility company a government run entity or a private company?

And not just people, the federal government was in on it too, and as is usually the case my industry shares guilt as well. 

Every state has different laws governing real estate.

Less complicated taxes and less government oversight.

The government is offering the landlord x20 more than what he’s paid for.

In other words, you both will continue to share the economic benefits of your inheritance, as in splitting the $20k income, while telling the government and the lenders that it is not the case.

You get cheaper labor because they aren't paying taxes, so thusly the government assumes that is enough benefit to you to not give you a tax break on top of it.

Was successful in helping the equipment company enter the government contracting space.

Mortgages are recorded by county recorders office.Here's an example - Montgomery county in Ohio:FAQ - https://www.mcohio.org/government/elected_officials/recorder/faq_s.phpActual database you can search -http://public.mcrecorder.org/external/User/Login.aspx?