If it is in a lower and market, something like click lock laminate or luxury vinyl plank might be sufficient, and are fairly easy to install even for a novice.There is a product that splits the difference, which is an engineered hardwood floor – looks like the real thing but installs like laminate.

If your CGL has per property limits of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million annual aggregate, many find that to be sufficient and don’t feel they need an umbrella.

Prices in these areas are very affordable and rents are sufficient to generate positive cash flow. 

However, there is this quirky rule that applies only to 3&4 unit properties - it must pass the self-sufficiency test.

This is precisely where I am at in Dayton.I need to get to Dayton Soon to facilitate the claim on my recent fire loss so that would be a good time to meet the good people at the VA.I don't have sufficient resources to make a new non profit venture workable yet but that is an idea I am exploring.

With two houses, spreadsheets and a couple of directory (folder) hierarchies on your computer (one per house) should be sufficient to manage things.However, if you are planning to grow, an accounting package (that allows you to create departments and/or cost centres), perhaps coupled with a simple CRM would check off most, if not all, your boxes going forward.

With a mid Fico score of 580, you should be able to obtain FHA financing as long as you have sufficient income and debt ratios meet underwriting guidelines.

@Marshall Leipprandt touched on a good point about the VA entitlement that can be a roadblock.If the ‘buyer’ assuming the VA loan is a veteran and has sufficient remaining VA entitlement, they can ‘swap out’ to use their VA entitlement to free up the seller’s entitlement.If the ‘buyer’ is not a qualifying veteran, the seller’s VA entitlement stays tied up in the existing mortgage until the home is sold or the mortgage is paid off.

For example, you are going to pay a premium for lake-front or size-able acreage, are you able to pass that along for a sufficient ROI? 

You should have enough equity that you could take out a mortgage sufficient to pay the siblings off and you keep the property.