Some areas and price points are meant to be home owner only and not many rentals because of what you can get per month for it.It usually takes about at least 2% of the purchase price a year to properly maintain a property you live in.I wouldn't really think of the house as much of an investment as a place to live.

rural smaller towns in IN you have to be careful as well  and again you want to buy where you can command 850 to 1200 rents.. buying in these markets and having rents sub 700 is just asking for trouble IE consistent cash flow Also if you want to take the time look at the recent Morris invest thread.. all the top turn key companies chim in on why 40k turn key is not sustainable or advisable.Its one thing for you to BRRR them .. buy doing that your probably into the home at least 10 to 20k less than buying it from a rehabber that did all the work for you... so you can move up in quality both in asset and tenant.

Be careful folks!!!!

So also is the paid help from a qualified and knowledgeable appraiser like Bruce Nell, and the help of an experienced acquisition's attorney.

Tonys idea of an addendum repair cost in the lease is a good idea in Texas, unfortunately it is invalid in Oregon and likely also in California as landlords cant transfer repair cost of appliances that come with the unit to the tenant. 

If we duplex down and wanted to move out of the property in a few years, could we technically rent the first floor property as a 4 bed / 2 bath or would we still have to be careful about renting it because we combined the top floor into an illegal unit without permits? 

Recommend asking for several references and properties they have funded.Be careful as there are a lot of scams out there especially those wanting a lot of $ upfront

Your last post said you have a house to get rid of. An

The holder of an E-2 visa may leave the United States at any time.

For all these reasons  @Rocky V. sub too in the wrong hands are about as dangerous a thing you can do.what you needed to do was a wrap with a notice of default provision in that you would have all the contact info and your 3p authorization up front before you closed so you couild remedy this.you will need to refi and pay bank off is what you will need to do.. or come up with cash or find a JV partner that will provide the KISH to take care of this.its usually the sellers that get screwed in these deals but buyers can too.. in the exact manner that is happening to you