Would love to connect with local investors in the area!

Locally my observation is that the need is more for low income young and working vs college student.

If I had known then what I know now, I would not have used them.Stick to you local guys you can talk to.

Find them at local real estate meetups, but be careful, it's a sketchy business overall.

Look up your local laws on how much notice you have to give to to end tenancy and then give them that notice.

I suggest you start with developers in your local area (your county and neighboring counties level) because they would be your most likely partner or parcel buyer. 

My suggestions:* Requiring code compliance and safety equipment is absolutely valid and should be part of the regulations* Requiring owners live within 15 miles is not necessary since poor hosts whether they're local or distant will violate the 3-5 warning system and earn a suspension.

One of the key challenges I’m facing is understanding the financing options available to someone without Canadian residency or a local credit history.From my research, it seems that a 35% down payment is often required, with interest rates around 7.5-8.5% for non-residents.

Thank you all who responded, I plan on spending some time driving the neighborhood and talking to anyone at the local coffee shop who will talk to me. 

I’d like to opportunistically invest @Jillian EzLike Russell said, this was a fabricated story by a local realtor team that caught fire in the news.