I have driven to property to discover that the maintenance appears to be deferred, even though there is a "manager/maintenance" person there with reduced rents.

You either have lots of money to pay for mistakes and learn from, or you learn beforehand and reduce costs to save money.Obviously there's a lot more to starting than just that, but you'll have more questions as you come closer to looking for deals, start the buying process, and so on.

First ask him if there is any other way  he can do the job, cutting out some non essential things.Then Ask him if there is anything you can do to get the price reduced in exchange for your labor.   

On sites that don't pre-fund, your money sits idle until it funds, which can take a long time, and which reduces your ultimate ROI.

I am aware of the Freddie Mac Multifamily loans, and the USDA Rural Development loans. Any thoughts on these two, or anything similar that may be better?

Some don't make a list of violators public, some do...By far the best leads are delilnquent real estate taxes.  

I personally would reduce the price below market for a quick sale even if it means making very little and move on to the next deal.

It seems an easy investment formula and it is much publicized (think the Buy and Hold genre, and the most popular Shumacher text)...But what the heck do you do in the meantime?

I too have been learning and reducing debt for the past year and am ready to pull the trigger.  

But, in most places, the County Assessor's office will have a list of tax delinquencies and generally, this is considered public information, unlike the consumption of beans in China.Hope that  addressed your questions :)