@Andy welcome to BP you are going down the correct path my friend what I would suggest is that you go to at least 1 meetup a week and befriend an investor you can find the real deal makers in the back with grey hair start up a simple conversation and explain to them your goals and what you want to do help make them more successful and in turn you unlock the door to FREE Knowledge just keep at and be persistent man you will someone because older investors always like helping younger ones.

I was mostly hoping that the police would get in contact with the owner and hopefully have them evicted, which is why I was so persistent.

However the range of "normal " is probably 2 months to a year.One of my beliefs is if you do what successful people do often enough and persistently enough you to will be successful.

Persistence is the key to real estate.

To achieve this, you need a passive income that meets three requirements:Rents must outpace inflation: If rents do not outpace inflation, no matter how many properties you own, you cannot achieve financial freedom due to inflation continuously eroding purchasing power.Income persistence: Financial freedom requires that your income lasts throughout your life.Income dependability: The rental income must continue, even in bad economic times.The city you invest in determines whether rents outpace inflation and how long the income will last (income persistence).

Take time to inform yourself, particularly when working with an HOA, and even then you may need to be persistent to achieve the desired outcome.

@Jason King welcome to BP and RVA.I believe as you learn more here on the site- and by reading "The Book on Investing in Real Estate with No and Low Money Down" by @Brandon Turner you will realize you are not as limited as you think in your ability to acquire your first investment property.Stay persistent and take action.

Be Persistant.

Nice to hear persistence is the key.

It will cost you the filing fee, but if you are persistent, somewhere down the line they may need to square it away.