While I know that there will be a steep learning curve when I get started (my timeline is mid-year), I'd like to mitigate the mistakes I make, to ensure that I don't get frustrated too bad in the beginning!

The loan is not recourse to the retirement plan member.Work with a tax professional who knows what they're doing to ensure the 401k member isn't incurring UBTI via UDFI.

In other words, think of the areas where your profile poses a risk to a lender’s assets – and ensure that you are capable of mitigating those risks.

Using the right insurance company to ensure properties that are vacant is not that expensive. 

Whenever you are buying a property out of state you should do a few things to ensure it's as smooth as possible.Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core.

I would start with data the municipality will give you. 

It's how I have found deals, I just talk to everyone and always keep my eyes open from as many data sources as as I can.   

The house just needs to be inspected to ensure it meets Section 8 standards. 

Whenever you are buying a property out of state you should do a few things to ensure it's as smooth as possible.Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core.

@Jonathan Pacilio before last year these properties didn’t exist so you may not find a ton of data.