We've contacted 4 property management companies so far and only 1 of them (VSM) followed through to come out and evaluate the properties.

Evaluate.  

I see them listed but not always greatA HUD property should evaluated the same as any other deal.

Gas station employees, mechanics, landscapers, and many others work in close proximity to petroleum products on a daily basis for decades and they don't experience health issues as long as they observe basic safety measures like washing their hands.

The hours working as a W-2 employee may potentially not count towards the hours requirement if you are not an above 5% owner...

Normal W2 employees get into this business hoping to make thousands in one phone call after receiving some courses from these wholesale "GURUS". 

I would evaluate the decision to add a balcony based on economics and the ability to attract good tenants alone.

First time poster here…I just found the bp site this week after diving into quite a few of the podcasts recently.I am brand new to this area and am in the learning and evaluating phase right now..

Based on my personal experience, owners seems to evaluate two primary cost criteria when comparing PM's, the monthly fee and the placement / leasing fee.  

Particularly for luxury or higher revenue rentals (let's say above $75-100k in gross annual revenue) a 25-30% management fee equals a full time  employee wage/salary.