It's good business practice and it's the right thing to do, but I don't know if you can force it.

Since I am too young to legally own a multifamily property myself I am going through LoopNet and running the numbers on different properties to find deals for practice.

Some of them are 'bull-doggers' (steer-wrestling) and watching them practice is amazing....they will just stand there, not on horseback, and take down a large steer just for practice.

@Travis HolmbergMy advice would be to give this strategy a shot in Phoenix would be to do it on a property you already own where it's practically guaranteed you're going to make money (already high cashflow, etc.).

What are some things or practices that I should have in order to be that 5-star contractor?

The disadvantage is that nonresident state filings are a PITA and result in higher CPA fees.Some states require nonresident withholding on state tax on a gain which in theory might satisfy all the tax (perhaps even overpay a bit).The technically correct answer is that you might still be required to file, but the practical answer is that it might not be worth the administrative costs.Ultimately the decision probably comes down to a cost benefit analysis to see if the filing burden and cost justifies the reduction in tax you might owe.

These issues and situation seem like a perfect scenario for an experienced property manager to come in and share best practices, and help you develop a plan to maximize the profitability of these units.

Having many years of experience and deep knowledge in property management and general contracting/home renovation work helped impossible situations, by turning them into feasible and practicable circumstances by either making appraisal repairs or an in depth financial reevaluation to pass the FHA appraisal and to ultimately find the desired value of the home. 

Somebody wasn’t practicing due diligence !

If yes, then you simply record whatever you collected as income, and you can ignore the note for all practical purposes.