I did my own inspection, but found the air conditioning not working. 

What you are looking for answers on will vary across markets, assets, values, and conditions. 5+ unit apartment financing had one of the widest ranges of terms available.

If it's not in the specified condition, either refuse to close or do a hold back of funds sufficient to remedy the situation.Careful with the electrified fence. 

What condition are they in and would your market allow for this?

If keeping the deposit was a condition of the lease break, you should have put that in writing.

If you are willing to give up the sliver of land, I’d make a low offer and notate in that offer that you’ll have no conditions on the boundary line resolution.

Do I need to research the houses that have similar conditions such as bed/bath, age, size around house which I try to know value?

Low range homes often take more work because they tend to be in worse condition and require more inspection visits and tougher negotiations.The difference is she'll earn $1,350 vs $15,000. 

. - One building, or 2 if very close together- No student, affordable or high rise housing- Built after 1980I understand that we’re looking for a needle in the haystack given the current market conditions, but would appreciate any advice on other sources to look into!

In my example above I was thinking 10 homes that are basically about the median price range in a county, in nice condition.