The exception would be refinishing hardwood floors ... tried that DIY once and wow did that NOT work out.

nothing ventured nothing gained.   

OH my yes... there are so many worthless properties in the US it will make your head swing I would venture to guess in the magnitude of about 10 MILLION parcels probably more.

At the same time, I would like to start my venture into real estate this year.

In a fund model the investor makes his money over time and the economics to the managers are in large part directly tied to the return we achieve for our investorsReduced management time / ability to be hands off – we would suggest that for most accredited investors, the amount of time it takes to properly understand and optimize the performance of the business, even if it can be achieved at all from a long distance and without becoming a specialist, is probably better spent on other activitiesBenefit from greater economies of scale than one can achieve with individual purchases – everything from materials purchasing, rehab crews, property management etc.Advantages on debt – specifically: Funds’ debt is non-recourse to investors whereas individuals’ debt is typically fully recourse to their other assets in a worst case scenarioFor many foreign investors debt leverage is not available at all or not on competitive terms, so this is a particular improvement for foreign investorsEnhanced exit scenarios, specifically becoming attractive as an institutional roll-up, with the better potential exit valuation that may drive vs. a one-by-one sale scenarioWe have bought and managed 2000+ homes in a range of markets for institutional investors in the past few years and so definitely bring best-in-class management experience to the venture.

PS - I do not mind taking on this project myself as a DIY if  its not that involving.  

Maybe you can find a mentor in the area to joint venture with.

@Jacob Wazydrag great advice here, as you venture along the path make sure you form a business entity.

This is our first time venturing into self storage and was curious if more seasoned investors in this space recommend using local architects or would they recommend using a firm that specializes in self storage units?  

I bet you could rack up some serious post totals in the DIY forum about plumbing.