So if you bought the Sheriffs deed recently, the previous owner is probably right about ownership.Bruce 

I'm using phone so hard to inspect via 1 picture.Hopefully it all works out for you.

So its "doblabe" but a big step bacscially  

I plan on building a duplex (so 2 kitchens and 2 living rooms).

So (directed at motivated buyers) be patient. 

I've started doing some renovations on each property and have so far just ran everything through the 1 business credit card and business bank account -- keeping track of all of my invoices, etc.Even after I split up the properties into their own LLC's, is it safe to continue doing things this way?

If Airbnb is an option for your spare bedroom then that's great, personally when I first started I didn't want to have to deal with the in and outs of people and also making my place aesthetic enough that it would rank well on Airbnb so I went straight to long term rentals but if you want to dip your toe in the water it could be a good option if shorter term tenants make you more comfortable. 

Can someone recommend a good third-party phone service to field tenant maintenance requests, etc. thanks so much

The contract is tied to the tenant, so I am stuck until then.

Obviously it's an auction, so you never know for sure.