(End)Unfortunately, HOAs are often ran by individuals who are not the most knowledgeable on regulations, accounting practices, and more - and property managers do not want to intervene for fear of losing the contract. 

Lots of leg work, calls and emails, but if you can find a few deals that could get you started with enough capital to get into your first deal on your own.

BiggerPockets is full of resources designed to help you along your journey, whether you are just getting started or a seasoned investor.

Connecting with other investors was a game-changer for me when I started.

You're going to lose your loan from what I understand.

@Hector Haro there's no helping someone who pinches pennies while losing dollars.

years, I would definitely sell it pretty soon, because if/when the market weakens it will probably start losing value.

NoIf you lose your EMD money could you get it back?

Proof of concept seems to be a key part of your strategy starting off.   

I'm with you that sidewalk slip and fall litigation may be less likely in the Midwest than say Mid Atlantic which tends to have more litigious cities but dismissing premises liability issues can come back to bite an investor and when these properties have such razor thin margins that an investor must consider the cost benefit analysis of safety against ROI, there is a real estate issue and is usually a losing proposition.