@Eric S.No problem, it's an easy mistake to make.

From my past careers, diving in and learning to correct your mistakes and stay on course makes a world of difference in progression.

I'm looking for any local knowledge and connections to help me prevent future mistakes and make this process as painless as possible while achieving fair returns.

That is the worst advice I have read in the forums this week.

If you don't have standard language to use, which us realtors have from our brokerage, consulting an attorney on that will be worth it since it could save you from making a costly mistake. 

I think it's a huge mistake to use the last financial crisis as the template for what future recessions are going to look like.

Being familiar with the local ordinances and design criteria is critical to success while avoiding costly and easily avoidable mistakes due to lack experience in that jurisdiction.

In this instance tenant paid 10 days early (by mistake it sounds like) there should be no issue refunding the funds.

Worst case scenario may be just getting a loan from a small bank and not going conventional for a new house.  

These goals dictate the ideal asset type, in may case, single family homes.If you understand duplexes and they support your goals there is no reason why you should venture out into 4 families, which are typically lower rent per door. 8 and 12 unit buildings are different animal all together and in a way the worst of both worlds - these "mom and pop style MF" have lot of the disadvantages that come with MF, but don't give you all the advanatges and synergies that you get with a "real" MF, say 75 units and up with professional on site management etc.