Collecting rents and letting it go into default might be a criminal act.

I just used a realtor for placement then collected the rent.. and had a good handy man.. of course like I said these homes I bought brand new so not much went wrong and easy to rent.Now if you go into the older areas of Jackson or Hinds county you for sure want to be very picky on where you buy.

Then I learned there are extra charges for collecting payments online. 

They might not be comfortable with you collecting the rents but atleast seeing the day to day stuff and the budgeting so you see where the expenses are. 

Build your wealth by collecting rentals not selling them.

I've been looking into Cozy for rent collection and potential late fee reminder but wonder if its worth it- or just have them use Venmo, Zelle or Paypal instead...

The RR & Collection report, CapEx report, and past years' P&L's, including T-12 should be all you need from the owner to make an offer.

I am a new landlord and looking to find the best method of collecting rent?

I plan to collect first and security at lease signing and give the keys around date of possession (after proof of renters insurance, utilities check, final walk through etc.) but I don't know if this is the best option.If I collect first and security at lease signing (in a few days) and they don't move in for any reason.

For me it would make sense that you don't necessarily need to sell, you could ideally refi, have the same amount of money leftover, and do what you wanted with that money anyways, and continue to collect cash flow from those first two properties as well as any other ventures that you use the cash for.