He offered to sell it to me with owner financing for $400,000 and only required 10% down, so I jumped on it.

Now, you can get some wholesalers but they usually don't know if the property will fit the requirements and regulations but you can learn that from the Realtor. 

Requiring occupant to have renters insurance is another possibility for extra protection.

I am sure the interest in that hard money isn't great.All DSCR loans I have seen require at least 12 months.

This apartment required a cosmetic renovation that is going to run me around $27,000 to redo.

Is the sum of the cash flow and appreciation higher than your required return?

The fix/flip might be a good way to get such a relationship started: usually has lower cash out of pocket requirements and you can sell the property faster to recoup the capital invested, plus any profits.

Please, no solicitations.Use the renovation/acquisition loan products that require 10% down on the purchase and you should be able to get a few going at a time.

If you ask the manager to justify a fee and he starts hemming and hawing, move on or require them to remove the fee.

@Venka Pulla It’s frustrating when a property manager isn’t meeting expectations, but transitioning to a new property manager is typically straightforward if you follow a few steps:Review the Management Agreement: Carefully read your current Property Management Agreement (PMA) to understand the termination process, including any required notice period.