@Jeff Marciniak You absolutely can charge the tenants for the utilities heard if there’s no shared utilities it’s pretty straightforward you can charge them the direct bill but I do recommend that you collect the money and pay it since it’s on you was on her you don’t want to have them paying the utility company directly because if they don’t pay you’ll still be responsible for the payment. 

I'm here until Wednesday afternoon and would love to continue to learn from others who've already started down this path!

Investing in real estate is not a path to wealth if you lack the ability to manage your own financial life first.

I'm in the process of testing this hypothesis and I've actually looked back at a ton of neighborhoods that have gentrified in the past and they've all followed a similar path based on exactly what you described.

What would give me the courage to leap into my REI career path now verses waiting and saving capital to start with is having someone to help show me the way. 

From there he should be able to guide you on the right path.  

Some people are more risk averse then me and they enjoy the slow and steady path over the sprinting path.

Being a newbie and getting ready to tread down the path of being a landlord it was very informational.

It is limited permissive access for a specific reason.If you find evidence of pets on your path to and from the filter, that is ok to bring up.

This career path will give you back what you put into it so take advantage of mentors and resources at your brokerage of choice.