I didn't realize this was such a heavy topic.Here is the evolution of my rental collections process:1. 

Tenant agrees to a new termination date of the lease of July 31, 2015....Landlord agrees to refund to Tenant all unapplied pre-paid rent less costs for damages, utilities overages, cleaning, and financial remedies upon the date Tenant quits and vacates the property.Would you recommend billing the tenant for the damages from Question #1, or go ahead and deduct the amount for damages from the rent refund just as the tenant signed and agreed to in the Early Termination agreement?

I think the 4/2 had a 24K BTU (it was ~5 years ago) and required an extra drop from the utility company and a new panel. 

Who pays for maintenance and utilities?

A couple reasons off the top of my head why you may not be finding any rental comps:-No rental demand in the area so little or no property used for rentals-Extremely high rental demand...nothing is available (not likely)-Craigslist is not highly utilized in the area (thus rentals are not advertised there)-Pricing doesn't support rentals (ex. really high property taxes or insurance or high price-point purchases like $500K+)There are probably plenty of other reasons that could be the source of this challenge.  

However it is our understanding you can only have one outstanding USDA loan at a time (we're aren't relocating a great distance).Question - Can my wife utilize our combined income and/or a cosigner to qualify for a USDA loan solely in her name given that I already have a USDA loan by myself?

Improving the comfort and efficiency of the building is part of the deal.That said, the bigger players in our area are not quite there yet - most still seem to operate under the mode of "unload utilities on tenants" to improve the bottom line.  

@Bill Gulley I was referring to investor to investor selling/buying utilizing seller financing, as entering into these transactions with owner occupants is over my head, but clearly in your wheel house :)Would there be any issue with OP selling on these terms (seller financing) to another investor?

I think I'll stick to introducing myself with my legal name but utilize my nickname later in my professional relationships as a way to build rapport. 

If you happen to have substantial cash reserves (and depending on the price range of the property), you may be able to utilize it for the 20% down and for servicing the loan for the flip.