No official photos, showings, or bothering your tenants with having to arrange showings and open houses and such.

You can buy up to an official 4 unit home as it will still be a conventional home loan.

I am not sure if this will be as official to call it a "meetup"... but I'd like to just grab coffee and shoot the breeze with some local investors (or those who inspire to be investors).

That would usually cost me a little extra per year for that, but since I also pay him for advice through the year I haven't seen a bill for the 'being an agent' job.All that provides is a Texas address for official notification of paperwork etc. and what he does is just forward it to me at my 'real' address.

So my fiance and i are looking to buy another property before we officially tie the not.

Here is a project that officially wrapped up today in Hazel Park, MI. 

It has been there since the 90's so it's unlikely anyone is rolling by to make me take it down, and I have been told by a contractor that it's also unlikely it could officially be brought up to code because it is too close to the property line.

Sounds like your saying they don't address it one way or the other.Check with your city officials to see if it is legal or not.You don't want to go down a path that would get you shut down and in trouble. 

Previously STR was being snuffed out by Austin city officials, and places like Round Rock and Pflugerviller were very hot for STR.

This is one of the unfortunate parts of the system: your tenants are already in breach of the lease, but until you get the official Writ of Possession from the court there's not much you can do.For the future, fix your lease not to allow any attractive nuisances, including but not limited to pool, trampolines, playground equipment.