I do listen to excellent podcasts on Bigger Pockets and am currently in process of doing my second "buy and hold" deal most probably in Jacksonville FL.To all my knowledgeable friends here,  I want to say you do a  "Great Job" teaching others (through discussions) so that Real estate becomes a joyful adventure where newbie investors like me can gain from superb advice !!

Finding a good deal, let alone one that will take a VA won't be an easy task, but you just gotta stick with it. 

Seems like a huge task to take on, but looks like you had a solid plan. 

Welcome to Bigger Pockets and congrats on starting on your adventure.

It sounds like it could be a solid first adventure, but as @Thomas S.

I use quotes because I would need to make certain he was good enough at these tasks to trust.

Outside of meeting with an "investor friendly" agent while in each city, what other in-person tasks should I try to accomplish to gain a better understanding of the potential upside to the rental markets.I have renovated and rented a multifamily property before so I'm not completely new to the game, but analyzing out of state farm areas is a relatively new path that I have yet to explore. 

Good luck on your investment adventure.

How much of that comes from appreciation or cash-flow is a mystery without reading their full-reports--a task I'd rather not perform.I'd further assume that if interest rates are still reasonable, and the math dictates it's still profitable, that they will just roll over the loans on these properties rather than sell them. 

Welcome to BP and good luck on your RE adventure.