Ideally husband and wife.

Remember I look for distressed properties.  

Just remember they're asking you to mess with your life at no risk to them.Stay the course you're on now - search hard before you close. 

Ideally they have a surplus and no huge expenses. 

I’m looking for a small multi family, ideally 3-4 units in the general NYC Metro area.

Curious how long they can maintain it, I remember hearing they have lost millions of dollars so far...

Ideally we would love to house hack a duplex but prices in my market are super high.

LOL.This is something I would recommend every REI do before they buy into a market for a rental(s):1 - Find out the day the court is doing evictions (usually it's an all day thing...and the same day(s) every week/month.2 - Clear your schedule for the day3 - Go to the court, bright and early that day4 - Bring a pad of paper and pen (remember how those worked...they still do), because most courts won't let you bring your tablet, laptop, phone...into court.5 - Sit in the middle of the room6 - Watch and listen7 - Take notes (see #4)8 - Learn.

Remember that hotels are more operational. 

Remember - it takes staff to administer them, the smaller cities have less resources.