I just went through this with an inherited house and the septic tank was under the driveway, leach field under the front forested area, but all was fine. 

He also suggested the electrical panel be replaced because of the potential  fire hazard of the outdated one that was in the house.  

The public transportation system and the already amazing bike path network is also expanding so that is a good thing to look at to find neighborhoods that are likely to appreciate at a more rapid pace than others.The Colorado market has strong fundamentals overall: diverse and growing job market, active lifestyle, work-life balance, friendly people, the incredible mountains nearby, outdoor sports galore which is skyrocketing in popularity, access to national forests and parks, and significant population growth due to these many positives.

If anything it should add more fuel to your fire.  

What's a good way to handle lowball buyers throwing their money around and demanding price reductions, even though its already an on-fire deal?

But maybe when things are firing correctly, the normal reserve accounts covered everything and that $150 really actually works out to be profit?!

Vague ideas of FIRE or earning $x per month passively is not enough to sustain us on our journey. 

The big sticking point is that after a little due diligence I discovered that triplexes in Portland are under commercial code and that they require sprinklers, acoustic batting, fire barriers, stricter egress and a list on other requirements that make the deal a no go. 

Knoxville is on fire right now with some big things happening for job growth, and I'm very optimistic about buy / holds there. 

You'll see the fire-risk electrical panels, slab foundations issues, ungrounded electrical, aluminum wires, exhaust venting into attic, badly graded lots,   etc. and it will eventually not scare you as much.