Maybe I'm just lazy, but the thought of paying utilities, cable/internet/cleaning/lawn/short term property management fees, and not to mention regular maintenance  and then you have to budget for the winter months.. sounds like way too much work for me!

Lots is written on the internet about it, and there are a lot of variations of how it goes down... but the gist is what I have written.Randy 

Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint.Realtor: While they're extremely important in the process, you can't make offers without knowing your construction costs, again, assuming there's a value add play.While you can certainly find people to fill these roles over the internet, it is very important that you go there and perform your due diligence in person.

There is high speed internet available, and its 4 minutes to the major highway and local supermarkets.I am trying to evaluate the feasibility/profitability of this project.

What  I can tell you is that between expenses we run through the company... cars,car insurance, phone, internet, health insurance, liability insurance, tax prep, some travel, etc... along with depreciation on properties and the associated repairs, maintenance, etc, we have zero tax liability on our rental income.  

I have been educating myself by reading Brandon Turner's book on rental property investing, J Scott's book on estimating rehab costs, through reading this forum, as well as other articles I can find on the internet.

As you mentioned it is always easier to meet face to face, than by phone or internet, so why not make a trip to the area and meet all of them? 

I currently pay the cost of internet which is $100 every month. 

What would you do if the husband is in a nursing home, 13 hours away, has dementia, and needs a guardian appointed if he needs to talk to anyone.

id make offers, from your home office, on reos, on market mls, (not off market stuff) use internet, zillow, pics, now more vid support, google maps, with goal of acceptance and 10 day Due diligence , ..you might get 5-10% off retail list price,  then have inspection, with support of agent.