Understanding what a good deal looks like.

They also don't understand the law, or the changes that are happening around the country.

It’s hit and miss, really need to deeply understand what they offer, if they will work for you or against you, whether they sign the lease or you (I prefer me, to reduce that lock jn). 

I couldn't understand why their credit wasn't better considering their income was what it was and their debts were not unreasonable.

Also any tips for automating this as much as possible and how to protect the property financially and property management would be appreciated.I ALMOST understand the rental arbitrage strategy if building a company scaling with say 30 + units and looking for high short term cash flow.  

Verifying last 2 years of rental history and income extremely important to find the “best of the worst”.Make sure you understand the Class of properties you are looking at and the corresponding results to expect.The City of Detroit has 183 Neighborhoods we’ve analyzed.DM us if you’d like to discuss this logical approach in greater detail!

I understand you don't need a lot of space, but you are paying someone else's mortgage.I would start with a fixer-upper investment, up to four units.

After researching the basics, I am looking forward to understanding the realistic steps in concluding a first deal.

With your background in lease management and site selection, that could be a natural next step.Regarding STRs, I can understand the hesitation—accurate expense tracking is critical, and not having that data can make evaluating deals frustrating.

In areas such as NYC the market tends to be a little lower, from what I understand.