Welcome to my weekly skeptical investor forum, right here on BP!

As an investor myself, I can also help you find more deals and grow your rental business. 

I've got about 7k in an emergency savings account.I am in the process of getting several mortgage pre-approvals to compare fees and get an idea of how much home I can realistically afford.I have yet to find a buyer's agent/investor to help me identify potential homes but will start on that shortly.Ideally, I would like to buy a single family home.

Out-of-state investing in cash-flow markets or partnering with experienced investors for passive returns are also great ways to put your capital to work.

Like you said , anyone can check the history,  I do have cameras installed and I do check twice weekly, it's not too far from my primary home . im a first time investor, is it ok to DM the listing to see if I'm missing something?  

Lots of DC area investors here.

I reach out just to help as I'm a local agent/investor here in the area; and my focus is primarily on investment properties with my clients.

Another option is to estimate value based on potential income and market cap rates, which can give you an investor’s perspective.

You can find some 2 units under or around $250K but they have been sitting on the market for over 150 days which tells you its not a great deal if it were an investor woud have already purchased it 4 month ago.  

Also, I work with a lot of long-term RE investors and none of them look at ROI.