I think understanding what she could get for it now vs. if she fixed some things would be the first step in helping her make an educated decision on what to do to get her out of this situation.

Educate your tenants.You can keep your tenants aware of the pipes bursting and how to properly check the pipes.

If you have the chance to take entrepreneurship and accounting classes though I would jump at that chance, and really round out your real estate investment education, and it will also give a great starting point when you want to create or grow your own company. 

Near the schools in Tampa, they would be considered student housing, and that's a ton of wear and tear and turnover.I love, and will continue looking at small multi-families that are all 2/1. 

I’m still undecided but this information is incredibly helpful in forming an educated decision. 

Proximity and identification of higher worth asset pockets becomes difficult/volatile to predict.Political environment and societal expectations that can be borderline ideological with regards to the aboveIf the crime does not get under control (see the above thoughts on education, gini, poverty, etc) this will weigh on perceptions and asset values for years to comeOn the upside:Indy is positioned well as a logistics hub which fueled growth, and it has a reasonably diversified economy.There is access to high quality higher education in the area.I will not invest in Indy although I did look at it awhile back.

Make sure you educate yourself - this is a risky business but your risk is dramatically reduced by your level of real estate knowledge.

I think you are on the right path, and you have done a fair amount to educate yourself by studying etc. 

I've gotten quotes in the range of $3500 but continue to call local providers until I can find a company with a more reasonable rate. 

Any suggestion on where i can find some meet groups or educational seminars to help get started in this space that want waste my time.