Do you provide references?

Consider doing this personally or using an LLC.

They clearly had no intention of paying off the loan in October but sought instead to further reduce their loan balance during a time of the note holder's personal hardship.

Point noted about not being able to underwrite without seeing things in person.

I want to start smart and scale up as I learn the ropes, but I’m personally struggling to narrow down which area to focus on.If you’ve done this before, what advice would you give someone like me?

Not sure if the upstairs tenant (heavyset person with a dog) plays a role.Seeking suggestions.

Are you building for pure investment purposes or are you looking to use some of the space for personal/personal business use?

Cat odor is far more problematic than a small dog, but I would check landlord references to confirm how they've maintained their last residence.

I actually plan to put money down, but don't have a frame of reference yet of what a specific % looks like. 

I would personally put them in notice just because they never tried to communicate it on the back end of fixing it.