Working with an agent should help me there, correct?  

The week in between Christmas & New Years, I called all the listing agents.

When it comes to building a team, having a strong property manager and real estate agent who really know the OKC market can make a huge difference, especially if you’re out of state.

Managing from afar can be done on single family homes with a few properties, but you'll still need a solid leasing agent and handyman which can sometimes be hard to find. 

From google: “The Fair Housing Act (FHA) does not apply to certain types of rentals, including: Owner-occupied buildings: If the building has four or fewer units and is owned by the person who lives there Single-family homes: If the owner rents or sells the home without using a real estate agent, and they own no more than three homes Religious organizations: If the property is only available to members of the organization's religion Private clubs: If the property is only available to members of the club Senior housing: If the property is designated for people who are at least 55 years old Even if a property is exempt from the FHA, it must still comply with the law's ban on discriminatory statements, notices, or advertising.

Is the agent really in the way of every deal?

What's left is simply $ to close (HML easily solves that) getting the vendors to do the "simple stuff" (pick your platform; Angie, Neighborly etc etc) and than to sell it (more agents than one can count happy to list). 

@Martin Manning To add onto what others have shared, in the most simplistic terms, apartment complex values are based on Net Operating Income, or NOI, and the cap rate.Price = NOI / Cap RateSo, if an apartment complex has an NOI of $100,000 and a market cap rate of 10%, the value is $1,000,000.Listing agents for complexes love to price based on a pro-forma, which is utter nonsense (unless you're in Austin, in which case apartment complexes apparently have floors made of gold).

Focus on smaller single-family homes, condos with low HOA fees, or multi-family properties in these regions, and build a reliable local team of agents, property managers, and other professionals to ensure a smooth investing experience.

Not agents trying to sell you something.