Quote from @John Busch: Truly appreciate the multiple responses and look forward to continuing our communication as we live in Southern CA and do not have many contacts in that part of the county. 

I went in a different direction so no info to offer here.

If you haven't already done so, consider contacting your insurance provider to add your property manager as an additional insured today.

Wholesale, foreclosure, and seller financing can work too, but I’ve noticed that careful analysis and having reliable local contacts often deliver the best results over time.So as you two gear up for your first flip, how are you balancing the potential risk with your long-term goal of buying rentals?

Does that mean the actual manager or a local contact.

If you are planning on selling, contact a realtor to make sure you are getting a fair value for your house. 

If you had prescreening info that makes it appear that there is no way they meet criteria do you still say the same thing? 

What further analysis should I be honing in on and key factors/metrics/info that may be providing inaccurate numbers?

Some great info can be found on the PropertyInvesting.com.au forum and Somsersoft.comI use to be quite active on these forums before I moved to the US.

Managing properties remotely is definitely possible, but it’s a lot smoother when you have good contacts for maintenance, property management, and leasing.Another challenge I've faced is that Detroit is very block-by-block—you have to really understand the neighborhoods.