I joined various internet marketing programs and mentorships to find ways to transition from my W2 job.

Bham is a great market.

These numbers suggest this could be a strong buy-and-hold investment, assuming the market supports your rent and expense estimates.Good luck!

A few other houses (all single family houses) on the same street are on the market for rental and they (including my house) all get grouped and nestled under one cover listing as “units” of an apartment complex.

Your question has been debated between BP tax experts both privately and publicly, for example here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/51/topics/819991-expens...And we ended up where we started: no consensus and no clarity.There have also been court decisions that support my interpretation, even though I personally find these court decisions debatable.

The 2 older adults would be the market.  

We are in Sub-markets, which have led us to having a very small general contracting pool and can't find any contractors to keep up with demand.

Is Phoenix a good market?

You can also do value add STR & Multi-Family Rentals by starting with distressed properties and using a bridge loan to acquire them with a lower down payment compared to a DSCR loan.Networking – Connect with local investors, wholesalers, and realtors in your target markets.

Off market and the new the owner used an agent so I reached out to the agent and made an offer How did you finance this deal?