It’s waaaaay easier for a company to fail or be unable to pay rent than you think.  

A team of lenders, title companies, contractors and RE attorneys, and significant knowledge of the intricacies of real estate transactions, you will be MORE than prepared to dive feet first into your first deals and will do so with CONFIDENCE.

I reached out to a friend who has a PM company, but they require all contractors be insured.

My personal preference for a buy and hold would be an already established area (or an area that's still gentrifying, but has already seen significant progress). 

., there is a much lower vacancy in Prime office space, which CBRE predicts that trend will continue with vacancy levels being below pre-pandemic for Prime space by 2027 (Source)Many people who work in the D.C. metro will still be able to work hybrid or fully remote due to the nature of their jobs or company incentives.

So, what is my most preferred to least preferred, it all comes down to cost of capital.  

You've learned a valuable lesson in that not all PM companies communicate the same.

I would have preferred a smaller 50K to begin with. 

Prefer Dayton, Akron, Columbus.Tennessee - is a lower property tax state and the properties cash flow pretty well.  

For newer loans with higher or comparable interest rates, the decision largely depends on personal preference—whether to transfer directly into an LLC or use the land trust strategy.