The low down payment house hack is the way to go.

We were extremely hard pressed to find a painter to do this which is why I said I could do it.

We do not have a resident benefit package, and we keep our tenant fees very low.

(We're from California as well) Everything has been extremely smooth so far and their staff has been excellent with their customer service. 

Another key change is making sure your contractor actually sticks to completion deadlines...why, because of how extremely tedious permit inspectors are getting in some cities, which can slow progress in and of itself.

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.

We will shop for used appliances where we can when we need one… or pick up used cabinets if we can, or search eBay for something smaller,  but going to the extreme of personally shipping something big in internationally for one-off renovation needs seems like a stretch of reasonable.Just like you mention, the number of unknowns would not seem to be worth it to me.Just my 2 cents.Randy  

I currently have around 20k cash for a down payment and that is steadily increasing so I want to pull the trigger soon.I'm interested in Fort Wayne for a few reasons:- I have some family in the area (they won't be involved, but have some general knowledge of the area)- Decent schools- Low crime- Airport- Low pricesAny advice or connections are welcome as I am completely new to this.

Things can and will go bad, but once there is enough monthly cash flow generated it will be extremely difficult for that one big issue to put us away or even 2-3 big issues all at once. 

I've now used it twice.The program requires 10% down, must be a rental, no PMI, and has a very high standard of credit.Last I did it (Summer 2022), my rate landed in the low 5%.