Never buy without personally inspecting and approving the property and INDEPENDENTLY, INDEPENDENTLY, INDEPENDENTLY, verifying everything from values to market rates, to approving tenant selection procedures and standards, to repairmen on standby, to everything else in Christendom that you can thing of.I am not a fan of out-of-state investing, especially for those with less than 50 years of experience, and for them, they’re probably too old for the hassle. 

Louis, even buying a property for $2k might be overpaying for it ;-) These properties always need some sort of extensive/gut rehab, so they are not for the faint of heart (or stomach)!

Airbnb came out with a new co-host option where you could get paid for your services to assist owners by selecting % of rents...maybe have him pay you 99.9%?

A good ballpark is $1,000–$2,500 per unit, but this depends heavily on how extensive the turnover is and whether you’re self-managing or hiring contractors.If you’re looking for more precision, connecting with local property managers or contractors can provide insight into typical costs for properties like yours in the area.

Same as you'd screen anyone else with very close attention paid to which parents you select to guarantee the lease.Are there any specific clauses I should include in a room-by-room lease for a shared living space?

We do a pretty good deal of site selection with data behind it and use experian as a data source. 

My suggestion would be to select someone with the most forum posts or most reviews.

What you could doIs continue to pay that loan and have the owner also select finance you the balance.

This way, you can ensure the design choices match your vision.Defining design choices often involves working with a designer or architect, but if you're hands-on, you can select finishes and fixtures yourself.

@Kim LeduffIn our experience, the #1 mistake owners make when selecting a Property Management Company (PMC) is ASSUMING instead of CONFIRMING.It's often a case of not doing enough research, as they don't know what they don't know!