In regards to Milwaukee specifically, I would suggest you research and determine what specific area of the city you are interested in and focus really deep. 

You are not living rent free you are deep into negative cash flow.

I suspect the walls have had 15+ coats of non-leaded paint since 1978, but I don't know how deep the test goes.Are there any situations where lead can cost a modest amount of money to remediate, or are we facing a huge financial burden once any lead is found?

Staining, updating all decor, added smart locks, LED light bulbs, repairs, new AC and deep cleaning.

Most  CASH FLOW day one markets are in the mid west deep south or Rust belt.. and frankly they are all pretty much interchangeable.

Hey, my 401k and stocks are deep in the shi*ter right now, but my rentals have always made me smile. 

Alternate options considered:1. cut the fiberglass bathtub from the bathroom upstairs to access copper pipes - need to get someone for cutting a hole through fiber glass and fixing it back up after the copper pipes are replaced.2. cut the drywall in the bedroom upstairs adjacent to the bathroom - the bathtub and copper pipes are deep inside might still make it harder for plumber to access3. pull out the master tub, remodel and rebuild the bathroom upstairs. 

@Max LopezYou might want to follow the "Deep Dive" series we're doing on our BiggerPockets blog about Metro Detroit cities, City of Detroit Neighborhoods and comparing Metro Detroit to other hotspots investors usually consider:https://www.biggerpockets.com/...

This feels like a light return on a 485k asset, and my thinking migrated towards selling the property and moving the money out of state and purchasing other rental properties.During my deep dive into self taught real estate investing i came across the idea of creative financing, and started running numbers on my monthly cashflow if I carried the note, with current interest rates, with favorable interest terms to me in exchange for a low down and relaxed qualifying factors, and the hypothetical cashflow doubled.My question is, is this doable for a first time home seller?

If you are buying at a deep enough discount and you know for sure that you will be able to refinance after the property is rehabbed and rented out, it works fine.