.,  by pass the water meter ,  rip off your condenser unit.. all quite common in the areas that are high % rentals in the SFR realm. 

Questions:-should I stay away from investing in a town home due the common risks (smaller buyer pool, potential HOA issues, large competition etc)?

But, that is common with the BRRRR strateg with the increased value and mortgage.  

A lot of these are small multifamily buildings with good returns.Trulia's crime map is useful, but it's also kind of silly and imprecise sometimes on how it numbers crimes.

All in all, I'd check those numbers because your margins are kind of slim.

simply do not take anyone's word for this landlock situation.. open escrow get a title commitment and see it it is actually landlocked.. if it is your remedy in the real world. is1. getting a neighbor to grant you the proper easement you will need.2. confirm from the city or county that you can access the property from this new easement..despite common statements folks will make that no property can be landlocked.. and there are remedies this simply is not true.. properties can be landlocked... owners do it to themselves.. not common but it does happen.As for the old house.. sometimes if there is no lead or asbestos fire department will burn them down as an exercise.. ( sometimes)biggest issue in many markets now is the lead paint and Asbestos remediation during the demo.. some areas they don't car.

When looking at properties in Texas the usual factors of looking at schools, crime, places to do, and demographics are the common areas to look at.

Poor guy...When it came down to it, she was absolutely not ready to sell and it's kind of hard to list a house when only the husband wants to sell, haha. 

on what kind of notice will this be permitteddoes the other have 'first refusal' to take over the whole venture?

I know sometimes the seller and buyer kind of splits the closing costs, but Does that 3% account for just my half or all of the closing costs (even seller costs).Because I plan on including multiple offers in my offer letter and one includes that I will pay for all closing costs.. is that already assumed that I should or usually how does it work, splitting the closing costs?