Oh, I see, you are not going to hire a plumber.

I hired a PM who agreed to manage my property for 8% of the rent.

If you are only looking to create a trust to avoid probate, you could probably hire an attorney to make a revocable trust.

Common problem, no easy answer:(We try to allow our owner clients to arrange their own maintenance, but have learned the hard way there MUST be limitations:1) They can't hire our people!

You can also hire a VA to do this for you. 

I want to remain local in NJ or at most drive down 1hr to PA (self-manage or, last resort, hire a PM)However, I must also consider maintaining reserves, a safety net for my primary home, and an emergency fund.It's just hard for a new investor now :(

It’s a great reminder to trust your own due diligence and not let others make critical decisions for you, like hiring a property manager.For future investments, building a trusted team and maintaining direct oversight is key, even with remote deals.

If you are hiring a PM, then it's not a big difference either way, but if self-managing you don't want to go much bigger than you have been or you may not be able to do all the work.

I am currently living out of state so I have hired a property management company to handle this task, however, my home is still sitting vacant with very few prospective tenants.

Hire a property management company who will manage it for you.