Total rent is $1845 (split by 4 [people] = $461.25) Additional bills at a flat rate: water, garbage, internet, and gardener, ($84 total if split by 4)Additional bills at a variable rate: PGE, housekeeper (TBD)-How should we charge the rent, as far as what bills to include in the base rent or charge separately?

Because of this, there has to be enough meat on the bones so that I am able to split it between me and my partner so would it be worth the effort for me to try to find my own off-market deals and not use a wholesaler so I could get a lower price?

As a first level of protection you would need insurances.As a second level, you would want to insulate your dangerous asset (liability prone) from your non dangerous asset (shares, notes, bank accounts).As a third level, you could split all your dangerous assets in separate entities and/or strip the equity out of them.As a fourth level, you would dissociate operational entities from asset holding entities.If you want even higher level of asset protection, you could then look for foreign asset protection trust or entities.

Maybe lunch, maybe need to pay them, but get a feel for what some standard costs are.

We are doing a Subdivision to split the front property off.

Which ones are you splitting between roommates vs what you are paying for? 

It is covered in dirt and sweat from my ironworking job as it became my lunch for a while.

Mortgage interest is  reportable you just have to split it across Schedules A and E.

They would each make a payment that would total up to the amount of the rent.The speech I gave them when we started was, approximately, "I don't care how you split it up. 

You could find a deal, then bring a partner in who could sign on the loan and you could either each split down payment and responsibility OR he brings down payment and you do the management/work.4.