There are certainly some things to learn along the way, but you'll figure it out as you go just like we all do.There are plenty of folks here that would be happy to help for free - including me.

Covering the mortgage isn’t an issue, but I’m considering factors like: Multi-Family: House hacking would help offset costs right away, but I’d likely need to put money into renovations upfront.Single-Family: Easier move-in with no immediate renovations needed, plus potentially lower tenant turnover once I rent it out For those who have been in a similar situation, what did you choose and why?

It did not cost me $0.01.  

Also your permitting process, type or land, grade of land, if underpinning is required will all play a factor into your cost. 

Yes, I’ve got a mortgage on it now, but my cash flow went from only $1000/month to $2400/month and I picked up 3 more properties basically for free with no out of pocket cash to buy them. 

When evaluating a property management company, it's important to look beyond just the management fee and consider the full scope of services and costs involved.For example, at our company, we charge a 10% monthly management fee, a $250 lease renewal fee (unless it’s a takeover tenant, which requires additional effort to establish a strong relationship - because usually people are changing pm companies for a reason), and the first month’s rent as a leasing fee.

In my opinion, the US and the UAE have agreements to avoid double taxation, so there should not be any additional costs in Dubai.

The forms are online, and it costs $100 per filing. 

You got a screaming bargain that was so good that no one else wanted it from the provider side, even for free.

Typically starting with a smaller rehab budget of $50K or less (maybe a max of $75K) and avoiding a 1 to 1(or higher) ratio of purchase to rehab costs is recommend when you are first starting out.