Non-rent controlled.The rent is automatically paid and we increased her rent on her auto payments and she is now claiming that all the previous payments weren't valid.Isn't the letter in regular mail sufficient? 

Our underwriting criteria varies on the kind of deal, but for something like this I look carefully at the systems and major costs that you mentioned: Age, style, and type of roofAge of furnace or other heating mechanismsCondition and material of plumbingElectrical panels - what type and is there sufficient loadFoundation conditionOngoing maintenance concerns - trees!

I have great credit, and the deal is sufficient so appraisal will not be a problem.  

From FannieMae.com:Parents or legal guardian wanting to provide housing for their physically handicapped or developmentally disabled adult child ---> If the child is unable to work or does not have sufficient income to qualify for a mortgage on his or her own, the parent or legal guardian is considered the owner/occupant.That means 95% LTV is available, and the same interest rate pricing you'd get if you were going to live there yourself.

This may be sufficient to mitigate the tax implications of foreign investment for you. 

Now, although he has the money and experience, I have sufficient more "book knowledge" and have done more research that can supplement his experince.

It's always important to keep calm and to maintain sufficient reserves. 

Even the best of people can succumb to greed and stress, so always inspect the property yourself, get your own contracting bids (until you have sufficient experience to do it yourself) and run your own comps.

If a fellow reader has sufficient scale or other financial complexities, to warrant the cost of a CPA and/or already has a Canadian corporation in place to own the US investments then I agree...different situation...use the CPA and whatever he or she suggests.  

There really isn't sufficient information in this post to make any meaningful contribution.