You picked a great community to join.. have you checked out local comps to gauge the market vibe yet?

@Dave Chengoue    Check your inbox.

You can also check out a group on Facebook with other investor like your self called Yellowbird.

Be sure to: call & verify employment references, request pay stubs to confirm income & check rental history by contacting the previous landlords.Keep the momentum going!

Once they have seen the property and are interested, the prequalification and background checks will do the rest of the work in weeding out undesirable tenants for you. 

Here are a few suggestions on how you can maximize the wealth of information available: Check out the blogs and podcasts, or take advantage of the search feature (magnifying glass).

They expect you to live in one unit, BUT I have never heard of anyone from the lender go and  check in on you to see if you are actually living there. 

And with an HOA handling maintenance, have you checked their reserves?

Obviously need to check zoning and set up costs etc. 

Get a gander at your competition and see what they are offering and take it up a notch.You might check Fiverr or TaskRabbit (not sure for interior designer) and see who is out there.They should be able to help you out remotely and without spending a ton of dough.