You need an inspection period to look at the roof and sewer line at a minimum. 

@Simon D.Simon, if I were you, I would immediately pull the carpet and install vinyl stair tread covers.

You cannot underestimate the irrational impact of the fact that a tenant is defined as someone who lives with the knowledge that his landlord owns the roof over his head.

They want to sell the house because the rent doesn’t cover the monthy mortgage and they have been losing about $400 each month.

It has its own court yard that could be used as a glass-covered atrium with a common area for people to relax.

You make your money when you buy, so you want to buy low enough to have enough margin to cover rehab plus your profit at the end.

One idea we have thought about is putting a whole Portfolio together with Local property management under One Business roof.

Then 10 years into it, my cash flow was up to $30K/year, including covering several thousand a year in small nuisance repairs.

It's all a game of creating barriers of exposure to your other assets and if you have a big enough accident at your property, insurance will not cover it most likely. 

Its easy to lose track of how much one SHOULD have in the bank because its hard to leave money sitting and not working for you.I understand there are many variables such as age of house, age of roof, age of furnace, etc.