Consider strategies like rental properties, BRRRR method, flipping for capital gains, multifamily properties, mobile home parks, Section 8 housing, geographic diversification, and building a team.

Since the properties are in New York you have a few extra steps you need to do to keep all of your funds out of NYs hands at closing.Here's an interesting BP thread on the South Carolina property tax issue you mentioned. https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/725/topics/604427-south.... 

Congrats on taking the first step.

Brandon Turner outlined this method in one of the older podcasts and there are previous posts in the forums.  

Sounds like you’ve taken the right steps so far by giving formal notice to vacate.

As for me personally, I follow the Ian Ippolito method of having a foundation of low-risk properties via direct ownership and diversify via a some carefully selected syndications.

-Rent collection and financial management is probably not at the top of the list based on some of the challenges that we hear about, mainly because if you are lucky enough to have solid tenants and low vacancy, this is easy peasy, but if you have some challenging tenants that default on payments, or the possibility of an eviction arises, it can be worth paying a management company to help guide next steps. 

Under this method each investor has ownership and voting rights.

And I thought it would be time to take the next step to the investment property 

Should I take extra steps to verify their identity and legitimacy?