My areas of expertise are PML/HML  Foreclosure Tax sale ( not tax certs) and sub to wrap creative finance and development these are all things I do for my day job.. like my project in Oregon currently  www.ivyridgeestatecanby.com 90 homes 700 to 1 mil each takes some expertise to buy develop get construction loans market sell and deliver these high quality homes..

Investing in Out-of-State Properties: Given the high property prices in Manhattan, I'm also exploring opportunities in other states. 

My doctor tells me that I have high cholesterol, clogged arteries, that I am overweight, and I need a bunch of expensive tests.

I used to have a 6/2 on Ohio State university campus north of downtown columbus and I got 1600 a weekend and netted 2500 a month probably. a lot of days were vacant but we did really well all the time for huge groups which is a nice I still recommend and there's not a lot. we just sold a new build for a medium term rental in newark close to intel. there's demand for high quality, well furnished places. 

Ultimately, I thought perhaps folks may have worked with a specific attorney that specializes in this sort of scenario, much like many of us share referrals for professionals that support the highly specialized needs of investors.

That being said, I am getting inspections of all major systems to ensure quality as this will be a hold for me (I would do it anyway, my name is on it).

Your numbers and your realtor's numbers are obviously more hopeful than realistic based on the evidence.You are either buying in too high or spending too much on reno.

Other expenses that may be high?

We are choosing new build because A) our family 4 has a certain size demand B)  the price-quality ratio doesn't seem to make sense when considering a preexisting home C) with interest rates being at near 8% with preexisting homes, builders are offering 5.99% interest rates and the exact home we are looking at is about $75K discounted because it's a spec home and the builder doesn't want to pay taxes on it.So, live in it for 5-6 years hopefully rent it out with a fully finished basement for potentially $4,200 in 5-6 years.

Apparently our DTI is too high for the HELOC so we can do a cash out refi but that is less desirable because it means we cannot then get the loan for the rental property despite having 25% down.