Still, my soft heart left my head feeling pretty rough, like a "failure".I don't think with your experience and 17(!)

My parents had to stop paying the mortgage and I could feel the stress radiating through the home every time I visited.

Systems can feel so one-sided sometimes!

Its normal to feel some frustration when dealing with annoyances like that.

Feel free to reach out if you’ve got more questions.

I’ve heard from many (non-experts) that I’d need to stay for at least 5-7 years to avoid taking a significant financial hit, but that feels like a waking nightmare given how much this issue affects me.Financially, renting it out isn’t an easy solution either.

OR feel free to PM and we can talk. 

Take detailed notes and don't be afraid to ask any and all questions until you feel like you understand the process 100%.  

It certainly feels like a well planned scheme to swindle investors. 

One landlord told me they "may" lose sec8  and in a state like Massachusetts they may also not so they might not be sufficiently afraid of losing it to feel they have to move.Also, in NY I see advertised things like "No section 8".