I've read some bad turn key stories as well as good, so remaining objective is my main criteria.

An actual loan approval is tied to the property.

.$25k is the amount they will pay you up front.They will pay you the remaining 47k in the form of an interest only mortgage with a principal payoff at year 4.Lets use an example. $47k @ 8% annual interest is $3,760 per year or $313.33 per month.

The inner wall cavities were packed with the remains of departed critters.

Mold grows on the coil.The remaining units don't run as much, and we're undertaking some other renovations,  so we've decided to delay the replacement.  

If you buy in an LLC, you can remain as the Manager and have someone own the LLC as a 100% member.

Due to my line of work I have my hands tied as far as getting a loan, so I'm trying to save up and get something crappy for cash, and my cousin back home is currently soliciting some rei's close to the family for some help to get started.

They should of deducted the leasing fee from the rent and then showed you had a remaining balance with them.They may be operating on a different property management software system and have to do things differently.You need to have a good understanding of your management agreement agreement with the management company. 

@Gaege RootI suggest this specifically because for someone like yourself, who you said has a lot of money tied up in student loans and child support etc., gaining enough capital to flip houses or buy rentals may be hard to do.

But yours may be an area tied to issues like oil prices, so the holding period could be through a few cycles (think decade(s))....