While it is true that she signed a legally binding agreement, you have a legal responsibility to mitigate your losses.

If you brrrr you can probably scale very fast after you have a few under your belt and the experience to mitigate mistakes. 

As a novice investor, I’d like to mitigate risk as much as possible.My questions; Is the RE market cooling down?

It's those maniacs that buy homes cash via quit claim deed off of craigslist that really get screwed.Make sure your property manager is a licensed real estate brokerage.Understand you can not eliminate all risk, only mitigate it.

If you purchased right from the beginning then this risk should be mitigated.

Invest in real estate by investing Long Distance in a 50k multifamily in Kansas that will be about $200 cash flow positive/month..Pros- Be able to keep a short commute to work- Live in the heart of Manhattan while paying no rent- Low cash deposit to begin investing in property.Cons- Run the risk of my land lord not allowing AirBnBs (which could be mitigated by upfront communication)- Investing long distance for my first deal is terrifying- I won't be able to use an FHA loan on my first property.Concerns:Am I opening myself up to too much risk by signing an apartment lease and a mortgage?  

To mitigate risk, you always leave inherited tenants on month to month leases.

The bank only recently began the foreclosure process, posting a Preliminary Loss Mitigation Affidavit just last month.

What you want to do is mitigate the chances of this situation occurring. 

@Alejandro OrtizOut of state investing has its own risks and benefits but if you set up a good team (property manager, contractors, etc.) you mitigate the risks and reap the rewards.