The previous owners were paying all the utilities for Electric, Property Taxes, Sewer, Water, Lawn care, Trash Pick Up.  

The problem is that people pick up your advice and run with it - as @Jim K. immediately did.See - even half (50%) is incorrect and will set you up for trouble with the IRS.

I ended up paying $0 at closing and I am actually picking up a check tomorrow from the title company for $918.

I'm new to the game and have been absorbing multiple books/webinars/podcasts, but I haven't seen anything yet about how to pick a place to invest in. 

The cost of good help is always worth it, just go onto facebook, ask your friends who they recommend for a good real estate agent, pick 5 and interview them.

So here's the ultimate conundrum:- sometimes I pick a few benchmark properties in my target area and track them to see how they're performing, BUT... you never know which dates are true revenue dates and which are simply the owner blocking the unit for their use!

If you would be so kind to view it and pick it apart and tell me what should go where, what I am missing and so forth.

Hi David.The servicer you pick, and there are many, depends on your needs. 

.)- Pick a market to invest- Find a team (realtor/Lender/Contractor/etc.)- Start analyzing properties- make some offersHope that helps. 

My suggestion is pick your location where you want to invest and find a Mortgage Broker thats familiar with that market...