What information do I need to gather from the agent / seller, and what additional due diligence do I need to do when evaluating this property versus when we evaluate SFR & Duplex?

When the recent landmark ground rent case ruling came down, it allowed for ground rent suits to once again be filed.

You can find this form on the BP file place here:https://www.biggerpockets.com/files/user/kp1/file/...This way, you have info from BOTH the seller and the tenants and you can see if there are any differences in what the seller says vs. what the tenants say.If you have an agent, let him or her make those information requests for you.

I'm gearing up to make my first purchase and I think that my best move right will be to find a 2-3 bed room single family that I can live in personally and rent out the additional rooms.

The two most popular options seem to be using 15% downpayment if buying a duplex or by using an FHA loan that requires 3.5% downpayment plus additional fees depending on the total loan amount.  

JOhn,  title companies are NOT in bed with any agent they are netural.. if they showed favoritism they could be in deep trouble from the insurance commission... you may want to check the contract most of them have a mediation clause for this very reason.if you don't come to a conclusion the title company will file an interpleader with the court and send the money there.. and you guys can duke it out there..

Additionally, you have some marketing dollars to ramp up sooner.

I would call them and give them 24 hours to provide the lease or they will be fired and a complaint filed with the Real Estate Commission

I am currently witnessing the latter with my friend's addition(over 2yrs in the making). 

For example, if a borrower is refinancing a $100,000 mortgage, the closing costs will range between $3,000 and $6,000"In addition I found this, "The VA Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL) lowers your interest rate by refinancing your existing VA home loan.