Caretaker would inform me of any repair/maintenance needs and I would call service contractors.5. rents would be mailed or deposited into my bank account.6. caretaker is vital to this process so compensation would be ?

Having equity is always awesome, but not as vital to me in looking at a 2-4 unit property.Can you force equity into the property?  

1) The very next closest market to meIt is vital that you know your market.

But those steps are vital b/c they filter out 90% of the opportunities out there. 

Once we know at what point to contact them for an interview, what are some of the vital questions to ask? 

That is vital in this kind of thing. 

Timely and clear communication is vital.  

I want to give you my two cents and I'm going to link to a previous post where I commented on some vital HOA information.https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/311/topics/405977-town-homes-vs-single-family-vs-multi-family-homes-in-minneapolisI recommend reading my post in the above link and then referring to some informational provide below.So from the sounds of how you're describing it, basically it would not qualify for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for whatever reason.This could be the case for many reasons.

There are markets that would probably be more immune to recession, such as markets near military bases, universities, hospitals, other vital industries and large concentration of government employees.

You spent none of your money and you made $10,000 with no property to show (which is what you set out for).A few of the points may change of course like the numbers, a double closing, your relationship with the owner and your cash buyer are vital.