I'm based in WI and there are several people from NY investing here, some successful and some not---the common thread I see from the ones that are not is that they relied on someone else for information instead of investigating, VERIFYING and doing their own due diligence. 

People complain about booking.com cancellations.

In the end, people rely on internet for all sorts of things and you want that to be reliable.

thats horrible, hopefully you can get some of the cash back. there are just horrible people in this world.

The idea of restricting what you do with your own cash, just because it was a refi, is probably unconstitutional.I know a lot of people investing in Texas from both inside and outside Texas. 

I can see how an application fee per person can be a deterrent for applicants in my case whether for more upscale rentals people may see it as more normal.I am starting off as a non-refundable fee and measure the resistance, then adjust if needed.

So you can scale that if you want.FHA is for people with poor credit and very little down payment.

Quote from @Theodore Sutton: Check out the site meetup.com and also the events page on BP for meetings up in your area to meet people like this and build relationships.

What you need to learn in your 20s is how professional business works, how to manage people and projects, how to run an organization and how to sell ideas and concepts.

I manage my own portfolio and have worked as a PM for a very successful individual but have never considered managing other peoples properties.