You have to be very careful in who you listen to.

You could post photos of a similar asethetic, but be very careful and make it very clear these are placeholder photos. 

Care to tip me?

Who cares about lifetime interest costs, except to the extent you can easily lower them (refinance to a lower interest rate) to increase your cashflow.

I also received a letter from the county saying that my property is in violation of several health and safety codes. 

And now with rates being high, plus many areas overbuilt with new apartment buildings, I’d be careful with unknown areas, and also what you read in the media about “hot” areas, up and comers, etc.I was in a similar situation to yours a couple years ago.

I do not care what the source of the return is  Historically the highest return is via a value add and appreciation and is more so recently due to the recent rate increase versus earlier this century (before 2022).However, most new RE investors cannot handle extended periods of large negative cash flow.  

It’s important to terminate the agreement carefully to avoid legal disputes.

Felt like they wouldn't know how to care for an entire house. 

If you can solve the problem, you can get the house for less than everyone else who doesn't care about the person.3.