Sounds good. 

You should have appreciation over 3 years which is good, but why didn't you keep up on repairs of the house your family lives in?

EBRHA has an RAP owners representation service for small mom and pop landlords that looks pretty good: https://www.ebrha.com/rap-owner-assistance

the seller has to trust that you / the buyer is going to make the payments and also pay the taxes and be a good steward of the property since that's their security on the loan.usually you'd put a balloon in, but i bought one deal where the numbers worked out for us to fully amortize it over 12 years. 

Also greatly important are quality contractors at great prices who won't disappear with your 50% deposit.

Is wholesaling a good first step for gaining experience?

If your good, exterminate that $-master who holds a lien on your property.

I'd love to hear how it goes for you — good luck!

If you know of any good resources—books, threads, podcasts—on the subject, I’d also appreciate the recommendations!

Green is good yellow needs to be looked at and Red is there is something wrong.. you simply walk in and pick up a copy of it on the counter..