I could technically quit my job and live off the profits from these 4 homes today but I am more risk averse than that and would like to have more cash reserves after they've been depleted a bit to acquire these homes.I'm always amazed how people are able to build a portfolio of 40, 50, 100 homes and haven't quite figured out how to do that unless most of those homes are under $100,000 (or much less) and they've been doing it 10+ years, but you do hear of it on the Bigger Pockets podcast.So, given all that:1) What am I doing right?

Prefer to have a purpose and develop, for larger gains.For now, starting to clean up. 

Get bids on the removal and cleanup, and compare that to a buyout amount.

I would have charged someone else $500 to clean up the mess , so I saved $ 500 which paid for my trip .

It will cost quite a bit to clean up (haul out old trailers (3K to 6K per trailer) + some additional legal consultation costs I imagine) then redo systems.

Will keep and clean up appliances.

I use Ben Moore’s advance product for topcoat, oil based water cleanup.  

It may not be too late to clean up the paperwork and get in front of it but I'd recommend that you speak to a lawyer in regards to that process.

They texted and gave permission to keep the deposit, so I used that to pay for the clean up and got a new tenant in there within two weeks. 

It seems most cities are not keen on taking down trees if not necessary.For the tree limbs, in Cincinnati, I am required to clean up all debris on adjoining properties related to tree trimming or taking down.