A reserve is unnecessary, but I still keep around $15,000 - $20,000 in my account.The point is, that you should sit down and assess your finances to determine what the worst-case scenario may look like, how much you would need to cover it without impacting your life, and whether you will need to build a reserve.

As a start work backward from the NOI and determine a cap rate. 

It seems a simple question to determine if the applicant qualifies based on their award or not. 

I think the trick is knowing how to determine those up front. 

I don't know how much mental capacity I would have to handle it without it affecting my schooling. 

Walk thru that exercise to determine you location and market strength.  83 units is a nice size to get started if you plan to Scale. 

This is currently the only thing I am actually decisive about.I think I'm struggling with analysis paralysis combined with generally being overwhelmed by all of the different metrics and data to look at.Specifically, I'm currently trying to narrow my market within Connecticut, but I am getting stuck on how to determine a "good" market.

@Brian Hudson,I run a turnkey single-family operation in Chattanooga so I’d be happy to chime in.As I’m sure you know, the extent to which a property cash flows (or not) is going to be determined by how levered your capital structure is.

Determine what you need to make to support your lifestyle that you want. 

Determine the need within the community, bedroom count etc.