You would be surprised what you can learn just by performing a google search on the property, so I try to limit my inside knowledge to that.  

@Kyle Griffin You need to be employed for 2 yrs consistently in a similar job to use the income for loan qualification.

You need a lot of horsepower (aka time, patience and dollars) to out-perform these folks.

Finally, re lack of rental comps in my area-3 bed/3baths like mine are a white elephant in my area, mostly consisting of bungalows built after WWII.

I expect their rates to be rather consistent throughout markets. 

http://www.wcequitygroup.com/properties/4577620045Cost Analysis Performed as Rental PropertyIn:Rent - $11,100.00Out:(Annual) Estimated Taxes - $500.00(Annual) Estimated Insurance - $850.00(Annual) Property Management (Optional) - $888.00(Annual) Estimated Utilities/Lawn/Misc -$555.00Total Costs - $2,793.00Net:$8,307.00Earn:Total yearly net equates to -$8,307.00Total monthly gross equates to - $925.00

I love Florida and would like to hold more performing investments there.

Ie, most residences have a no-business clause in the lease, yet most people nowadays perform some degree of their work nevertheless in the comfort of their home.

be very cautious as you vette them.. but you should be able to get into leveraged deals were your consistently making 50 to 100% or more on your cash.. do that for enough years then start to peel into cash flow units once you have a few hundred grand saved up and you just use a little of that... and or invest with a group and buy repositioning properties that have major upside.. don't get bogged down buying small rentals that have no upside its just way to slow of a way for someone like you to get to where you want to be if your smart enough at 25 to be knocking down 135k a year ) that puts you in the top 3% of all wage earners already... keep focused on that.. remember RE is just not that easy to duplicate those numbers without serious value add..those at buy smaller rentals are looking for a 10 to 30 year plan... and they plan on keeping their day job...

I think that having a partner you trust in a particular area can dramatically improve your performance, especially if you are not living there or don't even have the chance to see the area.I also think that it is very important before you find a partner to experience real estate on your own, so that you have a good knowledge of what investing means.