This way you will have a house that requires minimal maintenance for the next 5-10 years and you can maximize your rents. 

I’m using a running app to keep track of neighborhoods I’ve looked at but I’m trying to find a way to mark them down so I don’t end up overlapping and wasting time.

Don't waste your time with it

Even with the negative cash flow, if they are sold at year 5 (assuming minimal CapEx on a new construction property), I could still profit 40-50k.Are you defining this as a 'equity' play?  

I want to get in the rental property / investment flip property business but my biggest fear is wasting a ton of money for little to no net. 

At the end of it all, I could be wasting 5, 6, 10 years.I do not have systems in place for short term so that seems to be the longest shot considering the lack of upside.I am not liable for capital gains on this property so that’s the biggest draw as well as freeing up the capital.

Just make sure you're not wasting their time or they probably won't work with you for very long.The other way to do it, is to fire off tons of lowball offers and see which ones come back to you with counter-offers/accepts. 

It is good to have tenants pay for their utilities as they may care more about waste but all things being equal - a tenant is only going to pay $XXX a month for rent. 

This gets maximum cash flow with minimal repairs and the residents love the idea that they can make the home their own (Yes, we let them do any updates they see fit as long as they don't violate code).

Identifying lenders is basically a waste of time until you have a property under contract, ditto for interviewing attorneys, accountants, etc.