We live in Northern Florida and manage our 10 long term rentals and do flips in northern Florida and we decided not to go that route with this south Florida home after we started digging into it.  

It’s crucial to ensure that your cash reserves can cover not only the mortgage but also unexpected expenses during the remodel.The 30% housing rule is a helpful guideline to avoid overextending yourself, and ideally, you should be comfortable with your monthly housing costs even without rental income.

I am still trying to figure out my buy box, but long term rentals feels like the right strategy for us.   

To be considered an investor (and possibly get long-term capital gains rates), you’d need to hold the property for over a year as a rental or investment, not actively flip it.Check out the IRS guide on rental real estate and capital gains for more details: IRS Rental Property Tax Guide.You might want to talk to a CPA who specializes in real estate to see if there are any strategies that work for your situation.Good luck on your flip!

What documents do they require, what credit scores do they allow, how do they verify previous rental history, etc.?

Quote from @Brian Clark: Looking to network in Southern Maine to learn and share about long term rental properties. 

I have three rentals and my primary residence here in Springfield Illinois. 

This affordability gives investors the chance to acquire valuable assets while taking advantage of the potential for appreciation as Detroit continues its revitalization.Another benefit of investing in Detroit real estate is the city's growing rental market.

Doing short-term rentals would be very interesting.

However, given that many sellers have locked in ultra-low mortgage rates from 2020–2021, the existing home supply remains constrained, which will continue to support home prices in certain areas.For investors, rental properties remain a strong option in an inflationary environment.