Before any major renovations, conduct a home inspection and termite inspection if needed. 

But the money that you are making is usually below 10% with a turnkey property3) partner with somebody who is a skilled Real Estate investor, who can do the majority of the work and you can come in as the money partner.  

I'm pretty handy, and over the years, I accumulated a lot of tools and can do a lot of things myself (minor and major plumbing, HVAC repairs, major remodels, I've done it all, but sometimes I prefer to pay someone else to do it).

We worked in NYC for the majority of our careers. 

I think vetting the bank statements, references (true references of other owners), and seeing their other projects will be a major first step.

Financing is the major hurdle. 

We were initially looking outside the major metropolitan areas, where it's significantly cheaper.

This is too low value for any DSCR Lender I know of - vast majority of DSCR Lenders are at around $100k minimum loan amounts, some down to $75k and very rare but possible down to $55k - but this is loan amount not property value - so under $50k property value is basically impossibleThis begs the question though - are these properties turnkey or need of renovations?

We did the majority of repairs ourselves (fam of 4), while we stayed there (3BR 1.5BA, 1100Sq-Ft) and learned alot about the place by using it on a daily basis (as a renter would).Ask yourself: What size beds fit best into the space so you can still move around (w/ luggage)?

The majority of my projects are rehabs that get sold, (fix and flip).