However, turnover is high, probably because privacy is hard to come by.

It's probably the MOST heavily competitive field in existence.  

As far as whether to approach them with or without an agent - approaching them directly without an agent can save the seller probably 2.5-3% of fees, which give you some room to negotiate on the price, but you need to be confident that you are capable of evaluating the property value, estimating on the amount of work that is needed, knowing how to negotiate/ structure the deal, and navigating the closing process.

You can probably beat $2000/year insurance, but the management fee should be 10%, you need to factor in turnover too and 5% is probably not enough for both maintenance and turnover and I assume you added it, but you didn't mention property taxes (which have been terrible in Jackson County lately since Frank White decided to jack them through the roof). 

I could have retired about 15 years in but I would probably had been drunk all the time and very fat. 

Quote from @Leeling Chew: Documentation probably isn't that big of a deal.

@James JeffersonHi James,To buy out the property you need to probably apply for a loan through any lender.  

If not, hard money is probably your best bet

(Probably same in attorney state but I have no experience there.)it will make inspection problematic.

Low probability but high risk.