Ideally we would want to rehab anything that is even mildly dated (most of this I can do independently) and provided a very nice property and ideally keep maintenance down since ill be out of state. 

The general statistic is it takes about 1,000 letters to get an average of 40 calls, which gives you an average of 1-2 deals.

Virtual wholesaling seems to be my best option, because I currently live in Berlin, Germany, and the language barrier(negotiations/legals) would put a very high degree of downwards resistance on my new business potential than is tolerable IMO, and of course if I can master virtual wholesaling, then I can finally run away and join the circus and STILL become a kazillionaire as well (operate a location independent business).As a total newbie, I am attacking my planning in the following way.

Subsidiaries and affiliates appear to be independent, they can generate expenses for tax advantages, hold and bid on licenses and sub-let space.

That fits the statistics from your first round of mail.

If you or anyone else is interested, now would be the Time to email me independently to discuss before I do get an agent involved.    

Check out hotpads.com too for independent landlord listings.  

My wife and I are currently by definition, "financially independent".

@Joshua MartinI'm thinking you need to evaluate this as more than 2 options, each looked at independently in a spreadsheet.rehab, rent, refinancerehab, sellowner-occupant short term while rehabbing to rentowner-occupant 1 year while rehabbing to sellowner-occupant 2 years while rehabbing to sell with Cap gains exclusionI was struggling to see the value of any of the owner-occupant options, but I assume that helps you get the purchase loan on the place.   

MSA and therefore crossed of a few locations from my list that have significant sprawl, but would still meet the 500,000 person requirement if the full statistical area was includedMy result: 8 citiesSan Antonio, TexasFort Worth, TexasLas Vegas, NevadaCharlotte, North CarolinaPhoenix, ArizonaHouston, TexasJacksonville, FloridaPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaStep 7: Going back to the generic beginner advice of investing close to home, I prioritized the East Coast cities that remained on my listMy results: 3 citiesPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaJacksonville, FloridaCharlotte, North CarolinaStep 8: Leveraging the following two resources from a friend, I was able to cross Jacksonville off my list due to greatest distance from NYC of the three and highest risk of natural disaster, a combination that I did not want to deal withhttp://money.cnn.com/interactive/pf/real-estate/natural-disaster-risk-map/http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/05/01/weekinreview/01safe.html?