We cannot breach our guests' trust by playing games with them. 

I don't know what the issue is/was, but I think a lot of customers want to play games and he probably did his best to keep them on the straight and narrow. 

I’d recommend starting with a property that needs little/cosmetic work that can be rented from day one, and preferably has existing tenants.

Welcome to the real estate investment game!

I personally do not prefer to hold high cost SFRs as LTR investments.  

My biggest goal for this year is just to get into the game of real estate 

For the property I purchase, I’d like to keep my monthly mortgage payments at $2,000 or less.I prefer a turn-key property since this is my first rental, and I want to start generating monthly cash flow immediately without the delay of repairs or managing two mortgages.

Do you have a preferred type of property and price range you're looking for in general (knowing the costs can be different based on they market)?

I'd really prefer to just adopt something that another PM has already used and found success with, or use it at least as a framework that we adapt from.Appreciate any feedback that you think might be helpful.

You might have somewhat of a case against your Home Inspector - they have E&O coverage (Errors and Omissions), but basically this is a buyer beware game.