I am investing in what I described above, neighborhoods that are in the $100-150 range.

I would consider myself a student of the the great recession and I take a very similar approach as you describe just substitute PHX for Carolina:) My thought process and investing are greatly shaped by my experience during the GR and other cycles ranging from the dot com crash to the 80s tax code shock.

If this is a full rehab and what you describe concerns you, perhaps you are not ready for this level rehab.

And the way you describe it, SPS won't mind in the least if your mother wanted to buy back the home herself, for less than she owes them?

In @Brandon Turner’s book managing property rentals, he describes cash for keys.

@Robert Close what you are describing should have several different options but as posts above mentioned there are loan types that allow to wrap in renovation costs. 

Given my situation described above, does it sound like turnkey investing is a good RE starter strategy for me?

Full disclosure: I have SFH (85) and not multi family, but several of my investor friends locally have the same type units you describe. 

I see now that it's not that black and white... but nonetheless, I'm going to mostly describe that line of thinking with this post and hopefully the alternative thought processes will come out in the discussion.Okay, I live in an area with a staggering number of MHCs and from what I can see, there are two main classes of residents.

If you dont plan on living there full time (which is what you described), then that will be an issue.