I was thinking it would make sense to make contact, establish the relationship by getting them to sign a new lease, and then proceeding from there.

Its for wealth building and taking small risks as I learn the game.  

In most markets and neighborhoods you can establish a pattern but in markets like these it becomes completely subjective by using the extraction method.

I'm wondering if it's necessary to establish a management LLC to serve as a middle entity between myself and the tenant.

I was looking to establish a business connection with anyone that may be in Ohio, in particular Columbus or Cincinnati that has some kind of exposure to Brad's weekend.

Your house is occupied and paying, that's 90% of the game.

(1) 25k 2BR1BA unit (sandwiched in a 5-plex), spoke with some people in the are in the game, they confirmed my inclination that the ARV would not move much...but say I have 28.5k in the deal after cosmetics and closings...The home's ARV ends up at only 32k...that leaves 24k at 75%...would it be possible to do this with the cash strategy, ending up with basically only a few thousand of your money left in the deal which will be paid off in no time by actual rental profit after all expenses???

He has experience flipping 100+ properties in Florida years ago (got out of the game around '08).

He is very honest and he is in the game for the long run.

You can bypass that limitation by establishing a commercial loan and consolidating all the loans into one larger (portfolio) loan.In summary, find a property with positive cash flow and don’t let "limitations" stop you from building your rental portfolio because there is usually a work around.