This is why we use whole house or stationary gas generators for backup.Natural Gas is best.

and you didn't have the generator fixed or replaced. 

But I’m not knowledgeable on these sorts of repairs so I may be employing over-caution.

In my limited experience I would say that if you go virtual in a different market (say a smaller city with lower priced homes) you'll generate more leads, but you may struggle with disposition as there is less Investor activity from your potential end buyers (Small,Med, and Large Flippers, Institutional/Hedge Fund Buyers, Turnkey Operators..etc) On the flip side if you stay in the more competitive market it will be a grind to get those first few leads and to secure a contract but your odds of not being able to dispo it should drastically decrease (Assuming you have a discounted deal in the right area) and that check should be NICE. 

One month of income is not reliable when self employed or even for W2.

But if you get to the point where you're negotiating, then you're in a good spot.You can use list source to find and generate list but just know, mailing has 1% response rate.

I can't qualify unfortunately (self-employed with less than 2 years of tax returns).

My current employer here in New York is schooling me all about the business owning/running side of contractors, plus listening to contractor and business related podcasts and audiobooks.

dont take on debt until you are gainfully employed or have a consistent source of income.. 

I understand that all the income generated by that property needs to go back into my IRA but in the future I’m going to want it to replace my W2 income.