I think that small apartment complexes can be a good way to start.  

Justin,Great, I hope the best for you, please let me know if we can help you, we are a small company that find deals for other investors and if they are looking we manage their rentals,  please fell free to contact me later this week, 

My group is a small boutique RE brokerage (I'm the qualifying broker) and we are a licensed General Contractor.

I have made enquiries with a property management company in Tampa and they have sent me details of their charges and a copy of the agreement.I am only a small investor with 1 property currently and I have a few issues with the rental agreement (I've not committed to this or signed anything) as it seems that the agent (PM) is not responsible for non payment by the tenant, even though they charge for screening the tenant prior to contracting with them.

A friend told me about how the city of Dayton was basically giving away houses in and within a small radius of the city.

Low priced homes in small populated zip codes.

go to a small commercial bank and get a portfolio loan

I have a small portfolio of rental properties but never created an LLC.

Basically I'm wondering if I should be looking into big deals with the hopes of finding private investors to finance the deal or if I should stay small until I can afford to put all the money up myself.

Buy a duplex or small multi and live in one side, and rent the other.