Many owners do not run their apartments like a {formal} business and, sadly, what you have encountered is very common.Your broker is steering you in the right direction.  

However that isnt what steered me away, in the contract it states something to the effect of if you leave before 12 months you owe 1k even if you have no pending transactions...I decided against them.

And make sure you are working with the right loan officer who understands both real estate investors and VA guidelines and doesn't try to steer you into a Conv loan for the wrong reasons. 

My second advice is to find a loan officer who deals with these types of loans because they can help and guide you through the process and steer you when things get overwhelming or confusing. 

I'm confident if steered in the right direction I can make this happen.What type of deals should I look into to get him and myself a great ROI? 

I'm new to this and constantly hear value add so it's steering me into the direction of wanting to put money into my house. 

Part of your boots-on-the-ground team would be this PM, and maybe the other members of your core team can help steer you in the right direction for your search.Just today I started listening to the audiobook version of David Greene's book Long-Distance Real Estate Investing, and have been really enjoying it so far.

Even in Seattle there are some neighborhoods I would steer clear from even though it looks like all of King County is a guaranteed win!

Can anyone steer me in a good direction?

Looking forward to seeing others where you're steering the ship.