I've never subdivided a property that was delinquent on property taxes but I imagine the city wants to get paid first (or have a very strong assurance they will get paid) before they start allowing a large, tax delinquent parcel to be chopped up into smaller, still delinquent parcels. 

Currently the owners are moving the property from the street to the yard to avoid a misdemeanor issue and will be receiving a courtesy compliance notice for unsightly household items on the property.

If you are indeed not a US person, it's poor logic, and anecdotal at best, to suggest that US compliance costs for a US person shouldn't be that expensive because Canadian compliance costs aren't that expensive for you.Ultimately, the people that specialize in this compliance area aren't going to be cheap, and when the penalties for even non-negligent failure to file a complete return for many of these US forms start at many thousand dollars per form per year, you want someone who knows what they're talking about and is well experienced. 

Because I'm using rollover funds to purchase the franchise, I will need to use a third party to do all my rehabs in order to maintain compliance with the ROBS structure.  

Then call all the top brokers in your area, build a relationship and let them know what you are looking for and if they have something come up, assure them you will pull the trigger.

If you obtain a property personally with a warranty deed you are assured the title is clear.

We made sure our units (apartments and houses) were in perfect condition, never pushed rents to the very top of the market, which assured we received lots of applicants, and would gladly leave a unit empty for an extra week or two until a great tenant came along.

These are then matched up with a city’s records to see which rentals are out of compliance or whether operators are dodging tax obligations."

This being my first I assure you I am taking notes :)

You will end up paying more on the list price but you will be assured of a good product and good cash flow