I have been in manufacturing for almost thirty years and I feel I need to make a move toward financial independence. 

I don’t know your financial situation or how much you earn a year – but may I assume that an extra $10,000 per month on a continuous basis would free you from your slave wage job and give you the courage to do real estate full time?

you EAT the decisions of the PM and have liability for the results.With absentee ownership, you may have no choice but to use a PM, but 19yrs being 2hrs , 120 miles away, I created a local team to do the heavy lifting and I did the screening and decision making - - seems to have worked out well (see profile).I think I might word that a bit differently, J.You take responsibility for the actions of your agent(s), PM(s) and other team members and also the liability.

But not sure of their exact financial situation, because they didn't feel comfortable sharing any more details than what I have.

IMO, a CPA, local or otherwise, is a great choice - - they have their license a risk with EVERY action they take. 

I always go to view the properties and meet with the property owner or person handling all paperwork and financial responsibilities on that particular property. 

I just decided to get past the analysis paralysis and take that action!

If you could strategize your plan of action moving forward and wanted to return the highest ROI possible then one could encapsulate different markets and buy at lows, sell at highs then take profits to put into a lower priced rental that returns passive income with not much appreciation. 

There are well reasoned articles by attorneys around the United States which explain that the ideal scenario would be to have a local attorney walk through your particular business plan to determine your best course of action and to draft what you need.

The #'s still work if i can get it filled, but there would now be time and $ hurdles to clear before getting back to the financials I thought I'd be stepping in with.Now that the situation has changed, am I still obligated to go through with things or forfeit my earnest money?