For instance, my area (Denver, CO) scores badly on a lot of "liveability" indexes in the weather area because the high temps are so high and the low temps are so low.

Title co handling the sale should be able to pick up your deed in their title search and then insure title to the new buyer. 

Most of the people are co-works or friends that have like minded mind frames in terms of  investing and entrepreneurship. 

It's Denver, you won't have any problem finding a tenant.

Smaller safety items  (fire doors, hardwired smoke/co detectors) can often be forced at any time in a lot of cases.

In summary, most zoning folks (Denver) don't like them.

With that being the case, I am considering permanently moving as far away as Denver so that I can be within a couple hours of most of these midwest cities.

I agree with other comments above that $10k is not enough to invest in a buy and hold property yet, but you might want to take a look at an article I wrote about an alternative where I invest in portfolios of 10 SFR at a time, that are co-owned by the managers who are local to the properties in the midwest.  

For example; your landscapers to a $501.00 project, the company is an LLC landscape Co.  

-Initial questions for those in the Denver area.