My general rule of thumb (not very accurate) is I calculate $10,000 for each major project (new electrical, new plumbing, new flooring, etc...).

Just recently closed on a quad-plex. 1 bed. 1 bath, everything will be completely new, including plumbing & electrical.

Electric jack hammer , shovels , 5 gallon bucket , and lots of motrin .

Do they require a full gut rehab or is it possible to find properties that only need updated kitchen, paint, flooring and not foundation, electrical, and larger projects?

One of them is all electric.

This has been harder than scraping popcorn ceilings, running new electrical wires, or anything else I've had to do. 

For another, my occupancy of the MIL is so unpredictable and sporadic that it is hard to develop any rationale for the portion I should pay even if I wanted to do so (but it would definitely be less than the sq ft proportion).So, I was thinking of just laying it on the line for prospective tenants, "yes, you will pay all electric/gas/water/cable/trash, and yes that includes for the MIL suite, but I will pay landscaping ($200/mth) and pest control spraying ($30-$50/mth)".It probably wouldn't deter the discovery of a decent tenant, but I'm fearful I'd be planting the seed for some amount of resentment, whereas if I were to communicate (or treat) the situation differently, maybe I could avoid and have a nice Kumbaya relationship.Any ideas on how I could best handle this situation?  

In a rental case I'm guessing most people would not be interested in those circumstances,  and those who would consider the option certainly wouldn't pay a premium for it.So I guess the question is,  when accounting for water, sewer, and electrical hookups,  THEN what time to install and what is the ROI?   

I wouldn't feel comfortable with working with someone who is unlicensed unless they are doing a limited scope and not anything that deals with life safety (structural, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, etc)A question you may want to ask yourself is why they would wanted to be treated as legitimate when they aren't operating their work legitimately.

From Fannie:Borrowed Funds Secured by an AssetBorrowed funds secured by an asset are an acceptable source of funds for the down payment, closing costs, and reserves, since borrowed funds secured by an asset represent a return of equity.Assets that may be used to secure funds include automobiles, artwork, collectibles, real estate [EDIT: eg, a HELOC], or financial assets, such as savings accounts, certificates of deposit, stocks, bonds, and 401(k) accounts.Secured Loans as DebtWhen qualifying the borrower, the lender must consider monthly payments for secured loans as a debt.If a secured loan does not require monthly payments, the lender must calculate an equivalent amount and consider that amount as a recurring debt.When loans are secured by the borrower’s financial assets, monthly payments for the loan do not have to be considered as long-term debt [EDIT: in other words, 401k loans are not only acceptable, but we don't even hit your DTI with the payment].I like to push things; I've been waiting for an opportunity to use artwork-secured debt for ages but it's never come up.