@Matthew Powell do the rehab in the slow season

No seasoning.

So 2 things to make sure of when talking to lenders about your scenario.1) Do they have a seasoning period before you can refinance and if so what is it.

For all my seasoned, late real estate friends, if you were to start from scratch, what would be the best way to start investing? 

In most places for almost anything permanent that isn't ag (storage barn, planting, etc), you will likely need to either engineer to meet floodplain requirements/permitting or find somewhere else.Happy to take a look at it if you DM me the location, my W2 is environmental consulting and I've done floodplain development permitting for about 7 years, mostly in TX and the gulf states.

but I watch very seasoned veterans talk about this and for the most part they say no correction.

This has the highest potential income but also has the risk of seasonality and local government regulation.For consistent income, then building up a portfolio of additional rental properties will likely be the best route.

The 12 month seasoning requirement is fairly standard too.

also , If I return it, her furniture is there . should I charge her for storage during the time she is away ? 

Purchase price: $425,000 Value add self storage facility with 65 units.