I’m going to consult a local financial planner but thought I’d ask the brilliant minds at BP as well.

Then determine if a long distance property is better or a local house hack.

If you check out their website, you can find a local Rep to come out and quote you on their products and help install.Most of ours were hard wired, with quick install, to avoid the internet issue.

I would add that you should definitely checkout some local real estate meetups as that's the best way to quickly build a buyer's list. 

Most of those specialty programs (first responder loans, downpayment assistance, etc) are based on local state/county grant programs that back the loan.

New to this local market, I wonder whether buy and hold is a good strategies for this market (balanced between cash flow and appreciation for class A or B, I know cash flow is difficulty in general given today's real estate environment )?

I think this is the first step so they can know who has the lead pipes before they pass a local ordinance to require the replacement at the property owner's expense.It's a "first registration, then confiscation", of sorts.

However, it’s important to ensure the area is safe. in those areas I would recommend checking local crime statistics on SpotCrime. you can use this link for an example,to get detailed information: https://spotcrime.com/map?

Quote from @Stuart Udis: 99.9% of investors who are chasing the 1% rule are solely focused on cash flow and spend no time whatsoever analyzing markets based on fundamentals.I agree, BUT 95% of investors aren't interested in analyzing markets as they invest local to where they live!

Im also a local small investor with a few properties in Tucson.