We're also from the south Florida area, so it's nice to see someone who's familiar with our market show how they made something of themselves for him and his family and be able to travel the world.We've reached out and spoken with him a few times for his free guides and resources on instagram, he's been very kind and responsive, we are excited and looking to enroll in his 5 day real estate masterclass coming up in January

Those are two major pain points for LBP hazards.That's the same recommendation we are doing here in Toledo with our Lead Ordinance.  

I am looking to keep them on, so long as they are open to changing processes, and marketing.

Lower end tenants mean more headache:More frequent turn overHeavier turn costs/higher wear and tearSlow paymentsLonger vacancy between both the turn over time and finding another qualified tenantBeyond these factors, as others noted, a full unit renovation will cost about 15-20k if you want to do it pretty nice.  

As for the 2 options I think option 1 is a much better option long term.

After that year, you can move and purchase another property with an owner-occupied loan, as long as you intend to live in the new property as your primary residence.

What we are pointing out is that this is a view of the market that changes constantly.

However, the ones we viewed were expensive, needed renovations, and would have been a long commute for my son. 

The reason you have several potential approaches is because we are all starting without all of the info.  

So far I would say it has been a good investment but I don't really know how big I can scale it or how long it will take.At the same time, if there's a big investor looking for someone to help manage their portfolio in NYC or Long Island I would be open to jump on board so I can learn as well.