Lastly, the price point is still very cheap here in the sense that you can still find investment deals that hit the 1% rule for 120-180k!

Now, you need to figure out how to find deals and pay for them.

Is it overkill as I would not be dealing with leases, work orders, etc?

Since you would be dealing with maintaining a gas tank I would have all electric except a gas fireplace. 

To leverage the equity for financing my next deal, a second mortgage seems like a more cost-effective option.

If there is a large amount of equity, one party may have to buy out the other - if they cant afford it/cant qualify, then the property is sold.I deal with this frequently with mortgages. 

Explore remote investing options like turnkey properties or out-of-state rentals with property managers, and use summers or gap years to network, analyze deals, and gain hands-on experience.

If you are apprehensive of the market, and believe it will get worse before it gets better, you might consider going to cash, doing a private loan to a flipper on a project where it would be a screaming deal if you had to foreclose, and taking a look in 9 or 18 months. 

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

We don't allow any "deal-making" in the forums, which includes advertising your services or properties, looking for partners, etc.