So my question to all the experienced real estate veterans is this..What all does one need to purchase a property?

Whether you are a wholesaler, appraiser, flipper (rehabber), buy-and-hold, experienced landlord, newbie, veteran, lender, surveyor, general contractor, real estate agent or broker, whatever; whatever you are is good enough.

You will need to document the damage with photographs and obtain bids to repair/replace. 

It comes down to the numbers anyway in the beginning - you don't have to physically see the interior initially- would be best if there are photographs of the interior on real estate platform so you can gauge the interior condition and possible cost exposures once you take ownership - after you Offer and get the contingent contract you have your window for the Home Inspector to take a look - your entitled to that inspection so if the Owner/Seller isn't cooperating or instructing the Tenant to cooperate accordingly then probably best to move on to the next Deal

Photographers?

Hopefully, some of you seasoned veterans will either affirm my strategy or critique my methods.

Loans that are guaranteed by the Veteran Affairs (VA), much like FHA loans, are backed by the federal government (Ginnie Mae).

My wife and I are wedding photographers and you would be shocked to hear how many leaders in our industry are basically telling people "The most important thing is to start booking clients.

This lets me see my competition, and what is really a comp and what is not (magic of a good photographer hides a LOT.)I am only on my second project, but I have no idea how or why people do this without getting your license.

What about Veteran's Affairs / Veteran's Administration?