I'd also really appreciate any thoughts on choosing a big national bank vs. a smaller organization, as well as advice on how to filter through banking options to find a good fit. 

Hey Daniel, Unfortunately, in this market, finding a hard money lender to finance the entire purchase and rehab is unrealistic.

You can also find real estate investing groups through meetup.com, facebook, or a Google search.

The tax assessment values the property at $56,000, but, on the contrary, I find tax assessments tend to be conservative.

It is nice to find another tax lien and deed property.

How do you find deals?

If you find a way to get a loan that doesn't require a PG, you're good to go.

Security deposit amountYou can find plenty of examples by searching for "tenant estoppel certificate doc" or exchanging "doc" with "pdf" for more options.Here is an example and explanation: Sample EstoppelSome have a lot of legal jargon but this document does not need to be so detailed.

Finding 1 person from the "team" that you like and vibe with, and then asking them for recommendations.

I find the MTR strategy easier to manage than Short-Term Rentals while still getting rental income each month.