Quote from @Zach Howard: Quote from @Jonathan Greene: If you are looking at properties in the US only on Zillow, and not seeing them in person (I know you are in Hong Kong), this is just an effort in futility because you can't underwrite single-family or small multifamily deals only online.

Quote from @Alecia Loveless: @Jonathan Bombaci I think a good lawyer that has passed the bar to practice in two states is going to be more expensive than $200,000.

It will be easy for you to check if they paid on time, as you can check instantly online.  

When managing multiple applications, it’s crucial to ensure your process is both fair and compliant with local, state, and federal housing laws, including the Fair Housing Act.A best practice to avoid any perception of bias or confusion is to process and work on one application at a time.

Find Brandon's videos on YouTube for the "four square" method of analyzing homes and practice.

I also recommend a bank that has local branch that you can go into vs having it 100% online.

Sometimes you get lucky.You could even bring up the subject of seller financing (search online for ideas of how to structure a seller financed offer), and make sure a competent real estate attorney helps write the offer documents (if it gets that far). 

I have heard that it is common practice that private money lenders collect a monthly fee thru various methods, I'm trying to determine what those methods are.   

I’d love to hear about the crime rates or any other issues (which we cannot guess from the online stats), and how easy or hard it is to find reliable tenants and property management companies.

Unfortunately, while all the online places area great sources of information, you are much less likely to take action, or find someone to shadow, when online in a forum.