I am from Buffalo, NY and will be moving to Charleston shortly. 

@Brittney Yang To structure a short-term partnership for your duplex investment, establish a joint venture or LLC with clear roles, responsibilities, and a timeline for dissolution.

Specifically, under a properly structured Trust the following limitations will apply during the period that the property is held by the Trust: (i) the Trust cannot raise new capital; (ii) other than in the case of a tenant bankruptcy or insolvency, the Trust cannot renegotiate or modify an existing loan nor can the Trust refinance or enter into a new loan during the period that the property is held by the Trust; (iii) the Trust cannot renegotiate or modify its existing leases or enter into new leases other than in the case of a tenant bankruptcy or insolvency (in the case of a Trust that adopted a master lease structure, this limitation applies to the master lease and not the underlying third-party leases); (iv) the Trust cannot reinvest the proceeds from the sale of the property; (v) the Trust cannot modify or improve the property other than undertaking normal maintenance or minor non-structural repairs; (vi) the Trust cannot hold its reserves other than in cash or short-term obligations; and (viii) the Trust must distribute all of its cash, other than cash held for normal reserves, on a current basis.

Working with the city to find a solution.There is a similar situation near me where an investor bought a short term rental house, rehabbed it, ran it for a while, and then got in trouble with the town after a neighbor complained and the town said short term rentals weren't allowed in the community. 

If you need help, which you may, feel free to text the Bigger Pockets support line.  720-902-8552What I desire is to provide new RE investors real/accurate information. 

Since you’re based in NY, Detroit is just a short flight away, making it feasible to visit and get a feel for the market and the team you’d be working with.That said, I’ve worked with plenty of investors who have never actually visited and still built successful portfolios—it really comes down to having the right boots on the ground.

Offering a rent-free period helps the seller stabilize, but what happens if they still can't afford rent when the time comes?

Start with BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginners Guide (free).

If you do place the property in her name, then inherit it later, it does allow for you to receive a step up in basis at that point, allowing you to sell the house shortly after her death without paying capital gains tax.5. 

Offer to do his inspections for free in exchange for some education on how to find, analyze, and fund deals.