Good call!

Buy a property (1-4 units).

It's called a payoff statementif it's a big lender you will not buy the loan as it will take forever, you are better just paying it off. you then can foreclose based on the total balance owed to you which is both loans and any accrued interest. regarding fixing property or selling as is, that really depends and needs to be evaluated on a case by case basis 

If you buy less or take cash out you will pay tax on that amount. 

Many investors opt for building broker relationships when buying 100+ unit properties, but it also takes time to build a relationship with the broker. 

Also, if you buy using a hard money lender or cash, Zach Starnes can do re-fi's off the appraised value shorter than the typical 6mos and then you might not need any money down if you buy at the right price.

I call that a capital contribution from tenants).

After 2 years you can apply for a “Rent consideration” (I think that’s what they called it) as long as you still live there and that may allow you to increase rents by more than the annual allowance (probably designed for unit that are very low rents).

Property Managers:While realtors are great at buying and selling homes, most aren’t trained in the intricacies of tenant screening.

I rehab and also buy and hold.