We feared it was too low, but we were not willing to accept anything more and left it in Gods hands.

A personal liability policy "MAY" extend to one or two rentals but if you are planning on building a portfolio consider the commercial umbrella.Another thing to consider is that the courts frown on carry high personal liability but low business liability when trying to hide behind the vail.

If you paid over $375k MAYBE you could keep it because the taxes saved are so low.

Low value markets might be Pennies on the dollar like you allude to. 

Depending on your credit score in the US and credit trade line history, you could put as low as 25% down.

I checked the city's website and the plots fall into their "Low Density Neighborhood" district.

Lots are just drawn to the low purchase prices, and buy based solely on price. 

Low down payments but I can still use them as leverage.

There are approximately 28 Multi-family duplexes active on the MLS ranging in prices as low as $50,000-$219,000 with a median rent of about $929.

I know I need to get a credit card and keep my utilization ratio low, but I wouldn't know much about the process of actually receiving a conventional loan from a bank or any type of loan.