I've done hundreds of transactions as an investor and can tell you that we are hands-down the fastest and least expensive in Georgia and just about every other state we service. 

So if I “lose” money investing after depreciation, expenses, mileage, then we get a tax refund because it offsets my husband’s salary.

You also should list how much $ you are putting into the deal even with ownership of the lots as depending on that equity a lender will require you to start with your own funds. 

I am currently looking in NC and SC, as New England is way more expensive than other areas.

It's google-able, so won't try to explain it here... but often the biggest challenge of buying property # 2 is that they want to see a certain track record with property # 1 in order to offset the debt expense with rental income.  

We actually switched from Yardi to Appfolio due to price and overall a much easier system that all our employees can use (again, no expensive per user charges).  

@Matthew Wright know your landlord tenant laws as many states have or are enacting limits on application fees, some require itemizing and returning any unused portions if over a certain amount.

I am open to getting professional help so pleaserecommend any, if possibleHi Jodi..most lenders will require a six month seasoning however it’s possible to use the purchase price and do an immediate cash out refi or first position HELOC.

If the seller requires a balloon payment in 3-5 years, then can I  refinance once again the entire amount into a 30 year loan at the end of the balloon period? 

Just be aware of the rules wrt rehabbing since some require you to escrow funds for the rehab amount (that is if you are doing rehabs).