I'd love to hear from local investors, new or experienced. 

I feel I do a better job than any local property management company and I'm much better at hiring tradespeople, making certain they do a great job and by being the decision-maker I'm responsible with my money and am learning A LOT about every facet of the industry. 

Real estate taxes vary depending on location and property type, but they typically fund local services like schools, roads, and emergency services.

What tools do you use/recomment for1 - finding tenants (screening, renting, etc)2 - Managing vendors/work orders3 - Evicting tenants4 - Showing the property

Check out some local meetups in your area to connect with more investors.  

I would get involved with state or local apartment associations.

Its great that you are looking to stay and invest locally.

Any locals with some inside information on how true this is? 

I am hosting a lunch&learn Zoom call on Wednesday about rent increases, more info on RPAWI. org - a local non profit REIA.

Separately — and this is a more minor gripe — it was complicating my tax situation to pay state and local income taxes in a place I didn't live anymore.I pitched to my parents that I would sell the place and roll it over into a comparable property closer to where I live.