Well first off do not hire the cheapest contractor out there, they are cheap for a reason.

it's section 8 people still want cheaper rent-- no reason to max it out when they can rent for $800-$900!       

The contract would be locked in and I would be committed but if for some reason the zoning never happened I would be entitled to receive my earnest money back.Dorothy, you bring up a good point that somewhat makes me nervous.

One of the things I like best about investment buying is there is never a reason to become attached to a property or deal.

Next, it's budgets for the same reasons as above. 

Is there a reason I should set up LLC in either Florida or NY?

@Omar Khan, what was your reasoning for shying away from 150+ units?

Does that seem reasonable?

I know how frustrating it can be to have a bad property manager, it was the main reason I wanted to get into managing.

@Jimmy Ready Same reason people do things different than you or I would do.