We reigned in the budget for some painting and minor handyman work .. and she obliged to our budgetary restraints .House is being shown as we speak.

If only someone had written a book to help people like you.I prefer you spend some time educating yourself before jumping in, but that depends on how bad the PM is and how quickly you can educate yourself and take control.If you choose to terminate, read your PM Agreement carefully to see if there are any termination penalties.

How much time on average will I personally spend on this 4-6 month process if I hire a team?

I’ve decided to start with rental arbitrage, given my tight budget.

Lost rent from vacancy could easily be several thousand...so, by time you add it all up, it's easily possible for a sewer line replacement to end up costing $40k+ if it involves those types of ancillary expenses.To me, spending a few hundred bucks on a scope to prevent a $40k+ capex on a property worth over half a million is one of the easiest choices I make in the world of REI!

Otherwise taking detailed videos and pictures for the contractor to get a good idea of budget should be sufficient to get a realistic budget. 

These will allow you to advertise in an area where viewers are actually looking for a new home or apartment.2) boost your listing with a small daily budget.

If you spend it now, you lose your leverage for the rest of the lease, and you'll have nothing to handle unpaid rent, cleaning, or repairs after termination.You are starting down a dangerous path.

Since it says you are new to real estate and sharing calculations, my experience is that a lot of new investors are spending a lot of time "modeling" and zero time actually seeing homes or multis or commercial properties in person.

Whether that is identifying top 3 neighborhoods, driving homes, reviewing your budget etc.