People who want to do multi-family deals of all sizes but I have yet to meet anyone who have similar ambitions all-be-it this is my first post as such.

And don't listen to a real estate agent that tells you how easy it is and that "virtually all of my out of state clients buy without seeing and never visit the property". 

Multi-family properties many times provide a better return per square foot than single family, which would be to your advantage as well.As long as you're mindful of the reinvestment requirements and purchase at least as much as you sold and use all of the proceeds, you shouldn't have any issues with this strategy.

You may also want to consider purchasing multi-unit properties and live in one of the units.

Greetings BP community, I recently joined a national senior care living development team. I'm coming from smaller scale mixed use development and fundraising. I'm data driven and would love to immerse myself in IL, ...

Do you want to do Single-family homes or Multi-family? 

I'm most interested in Single-Family or Multi-Family Homes with the intention of having Mid or Long-Term rentals (although I am not opposed to Short-Term either).

Even if you have a good framework, it's much harder to manage virtually and stay on track.

Also, when it comes to negotiating the rent: - Should I ask for a phone call or virtual meeting to discuss the price?

If you have your own business/self-employed you might qualify for a Solo 401(k) or multi-participant 401k whereby you can self-direct into real estate with those funds.