For the last 5 months, I've also been helping one of my former teammates in his amazing Real Estate Marketing Company that's been gaining a lot of traction lately.

I know something about this from personal experience.There are alarm clocks with vibrating devices.

This strategy is gaining traction quickly but there are still some pockets in and around town where prices are manageable.  

Once I get my feet wet, I'm ready to take off and hopefully help others as I learn more and gain some experience and traction in the real estate game. 

All your guys comments got the wheels on my head spinning, and helped me get some traction so thank you!

My ultimate goal is to invest in real estate but I am having trouble gaining initial traction and identifying which steps will be the most instrumental in fulfilling this objective.

If you plan on building a team at some point then I would definitely read Traction by Gino Wickman. 

If the property is in a flood zone, but the house first floor and any mechanical devices are above the right elevation, you can significantly lower your flood insurance to a rate that could be very reasonable. 

I'll shoot them a note and DM you if there is any traction. 

Mostly this would just be a problem if all 4 tried to take a shower at once.As far as billing, you could put the gas on a separate meter (of the owner meter, if there is one), then put separate metering devices on each HW lead to the 4 units.