How important is being in a mastermind in your local area vs being involved in one in the market you plan to operate in? 

Full Disclosure I work with REI Nation which is a turnkey provider and we operate in 11 different markets all in the southern/mid/central part of the country. 

I think you are trying to elude to this, but it is worth clarifying that most gas heaters need electric to operate.

We are operating through an LLC.

Then, I would suggest finding and experienced mentor and/or partnering with an experienced operator to take down your first deal.

My employees told me during depositions was asked what the owner did all day, what did he do to ensure safe operations.

Especially now with Disney moving their operations there to the Lake Nona area. 

We just got voted as the Best Laundry Facility in Alaska within a year of operations.

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. 

Lenders will typically limit the amount you can borrow based on the Debt Service Coverage Ratio (DSCR) or in other words the amount of income left after operating expenses in order tp pay the loan payments.