You will learn a lot more, a lot more quickly, and a lot more reliably, than chipping away on a web forum where half-questions and half-answers seem to dominate - just the nature/drawback of the format.

All new LPs should at least run some of the ugly scenario numbers, based on the legalese in the OA/PPM etc. and see if the docs are really as risk aligned as they should be and/or are claimed to be.Most PPMs list a fee as a percentage and not with the dollar amount.

The other two units that you yourself are not occupying have to cover mortgage payment based off of rent schedule.

This isn't even close to a comprehensive list, but the point is that you need to learn the pitfalls of each building based on the year it was built and do the due diligence so you don't buy a lemon. 

Also make sure your roof load matches the area of the country you live in. 

-Real Estate is a Contact Sport...you can have a successful real estate career based on the number of people you know and keeping in touch with them on a regular basis throughout the year. 2) Can you "keep your day job" while you get started?

Someone might google things to look out for when buying a property, see 1960 and think "well I am looking at a 1975 house", so this does not apply, when in reality, many (but not all) still apply to every property.As for testing, Cincinnati requires a pamphlet to be provided to tenants, if the house may have lead based paint.  

They reached out to me weekly for the first couple of years with issues based on their incompetence (I was happy to help, to a point, but it got old), and the purchasing company lost close to all the doors in the first 5 years due to poor service, poor systems, and not really understanding how to add value to the client.  

My 10-year goal is to own and operate 2-4 short-term rentals in lake-based vacation destinations and provide add-on hospitality services to further my mission and cash flow.

What I would do is have something in writing as part of the offer that my bid is based on the systems in working order (or some estimated life span left)We will spend $30k to inspect them all and if any are deemed required to be replaced we will credit X at closing.