I know that R1 and R3 are SFR only so it makes sense that they don't allow for small multi-family (e.g. a 1 unit turned into a 2 unit).

Sometimes it MAKES sense, but others its just a hoax.Workers are difficult to find due to the inert high cost of living.  

If you want to buy a property, you put in an offer that makes sense for you.

Now I know that long term it makes more sense to purchase something you can add value to AND let cash flow.

Write down a list of the most important things you want out of your real estate career, bring them up at the interviews, and from what they say and how they say it you'll get a sense of whether you'll want to hang your license with them.Out of curiosity, what areas are you interested in?  

These lines require the involvement of a commercial lender but can make sense.  

@Bill Keast From the appraisal side it would make sense to include it, but when it comes to making offers when those values aren't included the true value of the property is greatly decreased. 

That makes lot of sense to standardize the finishes and it's certainly something that I'm going to work towards. 

If these add up to 11% that makes some sense, but I wouldn't count on driving that number down if so.

There is one problem, the only way this deal makes sense for me is if I buy it for under 85K, but he currently has a mortgage for 125K.