I am not sure if the Legal person I talked to understood the length of her time there so that could be the confusion. 

If a person wants a different outcome, they usually do something different.

You absolutlely need to be direct to seller or have close, personal relationships with wholesalers and active agents.

@Kyle Cross, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think maybe what you're getting at is potentially pitching to your parents that you would like to take a shot at personally managing the units to gain experience and some form of compensation.

Any insights, advice, or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

As you know there is no equity in this method, BUT it gives you money to go purchase that equity.

And maybe it's not all or nothing for a given method, sometimes a combination of various financing tools is what wins.

Quote from @Monish Anand: Start by looking for personal recommendations from investors in that market, then look on realtor.com or a google search.DO NOT use agents suggested by a website like realtor, Zillow, etc.

@Nicholas Nakamura can you make a trip out there in person? 

In fact, New Jersey law prohibits you from listing personal identifiers on the form.