Since I am out of state I rely heavily on trustworthy & knowledgable input.

Once you know you are ready to buy your first REI you need stay glued to sites like Zillow, Realtor, Redfin, and other FSBO sites to help your agent find a property. 

You've definitely come to the right place to find resources and connections.Here, you'll find several knowledgeable and experienced agents who can help guide you in securing the right property.

Thanks in advance for your response and knowledge!

If you stay in Northern Minnesota you could look to locate closer to Duluth which has a large supply of duplexes at prices much below $500K.

Your team can stay local.  

On the other hand, I’ve also considered staying in South Jersey.

Quote from @John Hu: whatever you do.. stay away from Jefferson Park... especially areas south of the blue line...

I think it would be better just to stay on good terms and let him know you will contact him when you are ready to sell.

I can think of a couple of seemingly great reasons to stay in the deal, which would be 1) they'd get a portion of the rent we'd be paying to live there (again, I assume this would be split 2:1:1), and 2) if we live in the house for a couple of years, couldn't we sell it tax-free, since we would be owner-occupants?