I am not going to sugar coat it, going direct to seller is a FULLTIME MECHANICAL "JOB" but I was able to build a rental portfolio from doing this day in and day out. 

Take care of the hard job first.  

If you are clearing $100/door with mortgages, each month, and your rent is $1200, one month of vacancy killed your entire cash flow for the year - two months means you better have a job or some extra money sitting around to pay that mortgage. 

That can be tough when it's a one-off job or you only have one rental.

AB 2622 allows unlicensed professionals to handle jobs under $1,000, such as repairing gates, patching drywall, or fixing leaky faucets—saving you money without sacrificing quality.2.

You don't say what you do but consider finding a career path job that might give you better income if that is an issue. 

Collecting rent statements, expense receipts, mortgage interest docs, and more—can sometimes feel like a full-time job in the weeks leading up to tax day.

I've never really done a deep dive in analyzing the area because it is a retirement community, median income is very low, and there arent a lot of jobs in the area.

Also, focus on 2 years of job/income stability.Class D Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, all cashflow with little, maybe even negative, relative rent & value appreciationVacancy Est: 20%+ should be used to cover nonpayment, evictions & damages.Tenant Pool: majority will have FICO scores under 560 (almost 30% probability of default), little to no good tradelines, lots of collections & chargeoffs, recent evictions.

@Brittany MyrickIf I were getting started in real estate investing in New England, I’d focus on researching local market trends, especially job growth, rental demand, and the broader economic outlook.