I used to be against condos because I didn't want to deal with hoa, I believe they are all crooks who steal money and they take away many of your freedoms (you can't park your bike here, why did you scratch the tile here)However, I realized for a noob who doesn't know what the hell he is doing, a condo is much less risky than a house.

The long-term impact won't be known for a while as investors, homeowners, insurance companies, and the like make changes in the coming months and years.I believe that the Tampa Bay Area will continue to be a good market overall as the foundations are solid. 

Haven't found much resources on how to structure the deal whether to buy out partner's shares at existing basis (I believe this wouldn't be advantageous as I wouldn't get to mark the asset to market and lose out on depreciation) or open new LLC or S-Corp and buy out both partners (I would end up taking gain tax due to sale but would get new dep. basis).

I recommend using RentPrep—it's a great service for running credit and background checks, and, I believe it was bought by Stessa.

I believe I still have his contact information in my records.

🎉This deal came with several benefits that we believe set it apart from traditional syndications:1.Low Leverage & Investor Protection: We’ve committed to a low-leverage strategy to protect our investors, which we believe adds an extra layer of security in today’s market.

I believe you have a 45-day window to shop lenders without having a drastic hit on your credit score.Happy to recommend someone if you're still searching, shooting you a PM.Also, as @Rene Hosman mentioned, there is a service here on BP to link you with lendersAll the best!

My parents for burnt bad by the banks, that shaped my financial believe system growing up.Of course, you should not "feel" about money at all.

I don't believe you should necessarily invest purely for appreciation.

While I'm not a lawyer and I would always encourage you to speak to one I believe you can 1031 homes but I would say it's much more powerful as you scale with commercial.