With this choice, you can manually assign the request to your preferred contractor using the "Send Work Order" feature whenever a maintenance request comes in.

While you can't take forever and a day, because a desirable candidate has choices, deciding too quickly can be disasterous.

What kind of resources do you recommend for finding a good first choice? 

(I know a lot of investors who are doing this, but I've been surprised to find out that it's a new concept that others haven't considered.)The more units, the better in this scenario because you can hedge your bets with more units.

You can do a duplex though, which might not be a bad idea.With your credit score, conventional might be a good choice, you only need 5% down for 2-4 units if you live in one. 

PG's are worthless those that have PGs that are worth anything dont need gap funding they have the cash.this is a play for folks you know well .. not for internet facebook BP etc.. people that do this do it because they know you like you trust you and think your a good operator.Public has to many other choices that are much safer bet.. its not always about ROI with those with money..

You don’t really have a choice.

And even if you hire a property manager to take things off your plate, that process isn’t foolproof, as Gregory illustrates.Buying a turnkey property (ideally with a tenant in place), or opting for a syndication or fund, could be a better bet if you’re looking to invest outside California but don’t want to deal with the hassles of “landlording.”

Good luck, you are a busy man with school, family and baseball.Likely your best bet is house hacking (if your partner and child are willing to share housing). 

When January comes, you will have two disadvantages:- you will have missed on the end-of-year planning opportunities- some of the most highly sought after professionals will be full and not taking clients anymoreAnd the longer you wait, the fewer choices you will have.