Successful investor don't come out of pocket very often.  

Do they provide exclusive leads, or are they shared among multiple investors?

My company has helped many investors in your situation hold on to an appreciating asset such as this.

Quote from @Ricardo Lemus: For a newer investor, a good investment is a property that pays for all expenses with some cash left over.

The last few years have been great for investors/homebuyers who bought pre-con, but looking back to the few years after the 2014/15 boom, this wasn't the case, where many had actually committed to buying a property that wasn't quite worth what they signed up for closer to closing because the appraisal weren't matching the contract price, requiring a cash top-up.

Currently, I’m in full research and networking mode—learning, looking to connect with local investors, and exploring my first investment.

I think that if you are serious about doing your accounting and taxes efficiently and effectively for your business, your best bet I would say is a CPA that specializes in accounting and taxes for Real Estate Investors.

Given you and your investor both have experience in different areas, I’d say keep a flexible approach and compare city requirements before putting too much money down.

I work with Property Management in Houston but can recommend some great networking/educational events for you :) Check out Space City REI - there's monthly meetups with an educational speaker relating to real estate investing and there are plenty of Investors looking for Wholesalers out there! 

As an investor your ratios won't look good to the traditional lenders.