I travel to a lot of the smaller towns/cities around Edmonton with my work so I'm also looking at stuff a bit farther out where prices are lower but the cities are big enough to have a solid pool of renters.That sounds like a pretty attractive strategy.  

My pool of buyers is small for now, but looking to finish a few residential properties before they jump in with me.

1-4 is single family as Matt mentioned, the appraisal will be using all three approaches to value, the most weight will probably be the market approach, as there is a larger market for residential properties than commercial, more potential buyers in the pool. :)

The other big thing I'm concerned about is the property has an inground pool that needs a lot of work. 

You can post this building will Go NO Smoking  in 30 days that no smoking will be permitted in the common areas of the building or on the grounds, or by the pool area 

If you want to strike up a conversation with me, ask about the house the pool scenes in Cocoon were filmed at.I'm also a licensed Community Association Manager, and had a portfolio of properties covering much of Central Florida.

For you, being a US resident, investing in your own backyard so to speak, would be much easier.

Over here in Norway (read:Europe) we got a staggering 28 % income tax on all rental income, but I am still gonna invest just because it's my backyard and I want my first deal to be local. 

There is still much work to be done to the complex, i.e. driveway repair, pool repair, siding, etc.Again, she lives in a nice place in CT.

It's good to jump in the pool and learn how to swim later, just make sure you have a flotation device (bigger pockets!)