A couple of sites have good charts and maps to study: realtor.org (look in Top Menu "Research and Statistics) and another site is ngkf.com (Top Menu again under "Research.")Choose one area at a time.

Your loan officer should have told you this upfront after receiving the contract.From FNMA's perspective, since mortgages secured by investment properties are statistically more risky than those secured by a primary residence, the guidelines are set to ensure that the investor has more skin in the game.

If you build a pad you will also need to do some landscaping and grass establishment to cover the bare dirt. 

Here's the EPA definition, it doesn't give a list but from that definition you can infer that lizards are not pests.While they are not living where SHE wants them they cause no damage or disease and generally stay outside so are not a nuisance.As for the bagworms again not really a pest, though they could be considered one due to eating foliage of your landscaping.

I agree that there is an entirely new regulatory landscape but it is evolving and there is room to maneuver within it.

Macy level is the happy medium between profits and expenses.Deal Breakers I have found are LocationCleaniless InternallyCurb appeal (cleanness, landscaping (fancy not required just clean up)No Carpets, tile, laminate, hardwoodFresh paintUpdated (again doesn't have to be perfect but the right paint and flowing can bring anything up to date even with a blue tub) Paint can bring the cabinets into this decadeWorking/Funcitonal/No appearance of issues (cracks, filled in, etc)One step up (garbage disposal, dishwasher, automatic garage door), etcUpdated hardware (kitchen, light fixtures, etc, spray paint can work great)Some bonus if cheap, I would also put in.

Gordon,As a fellow new investor, I can relate to how things seem daunting when you are diving into the real estate investing landscape.  

If statistically there is one true lunatic per square mile, looks like your house just got some really good karma.  

Indi seems to me a city that provides affordable housing, has an overall stable RE market and is somewhere in the upper half of statistics when it comes to job and economy growth. 

There are a growing number of public databases on crime statistics.