My wife and I come from a manufacturing leadership and project management background.

Their pro formas felt optimistic with providing 6% annual appreciation and property management that is only about 6% of rent so I take it with a grain of salt (they offer their own property management services but it has terrible reviews on Yelp so I would probably go with someone else). 

@Jason Brown - I'm a CT based investor, flipper, and property management company owner.  

I want to know more about the area and build a team that can help me purchase and manage properties.   

Do managers that advertise 8% only do 8% when there's a bundle of doors to manage?

If you ever need help running numbers or managing your property. 

Getting a rental license as an out-of-state investor is doable, but you’ll need to manage inspections and compliance.

Do you think purchasing a property in Philadelphia, PA, and managing it remotely from Westchester, NY (Roughly 2-2.5 hours away) with the help of a local handyman would be too much of a stretch?

If you're in it for the long run you'll learn that management makes a good investment into a great investment.

Especially if you are hiring property management.