Knowing that ahead of time and letting him know you know it may help smooth the situation over.I'm quite surprised there is not a 30-day notice clause somewhere in the lease as that is pretty standard, but if it isn't there then what you've provided points to you not owing him anything past 12/16 in my opinion.

I have the standard TREC contract.

More than likely you'll only see about half of the net that they stated....if you had a mortgage on it you'd probably end up in the red every month.My guess is they took the standard rent - taxes -insurance = profit sucker formula.

Two things I am less confident about are: 1) the construction quality (is it a "cracker box", did the foreman let the guys cut corners to make a deadline or save a buck or simply because he was too busy) and 2) if the home in question turns out to inspect well, how how well the neighborhood is going to fare over time if it's less than 5 or 10 years old?

When you buy, buy a few high quality pieces of real estate.

Loans on a 2-4 unit residence are typically subject to Fannie Mae guidelines which require a standard appraisal.

Is this something that is standard or are there banks that will take 20% on houses 5 and up?

This includes furniture rental, all set up and take down, and "professional quality interior design."

I find quality workers attract other quality workers.

I used to also go to the Boston AREIA but stopped going as the quality of the meetings were going down hill.Look forward to meeting you if you make it to the Black Diamond event on the 28th.