I have an inheritance to help with a down payment but think I may need to partner with some experienced personnel in order to take on a larger building.

So, for example, a HML may let you borrow 75% of purchase price as opposed to 80-85% for a more experienced person. 

Are other areas of the country experiencing a resurgence while South Jersey remains stagnant or am I just finding outliers?

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You can get a much better yield secured by an appreciating asset and that's what most experienced note investors are looking for.

I'm not too experienced just yet, but I've reached out to some partners to also investigate. 

You can do the research, join a local apartment association or hire a PM.If that sounds doable to you, you can certainly search online for a property, but if you find a good agent, they should be able to steer you to a property that will serve you well as well as point you in the right direction for any management advice you might need.Best of luck!

I invest in NYC and the last two peaks I experienced was 1986, and 2006.

No way around good planning and doing your homework.Exactly, I've never done it that way, I'd only use that as an estimate if you were looking at a house online or something.

Since you live in the northeast, you might want to consider an experienced Turnkey company that would keep your travel expense down while earning some money every month.Unless you have friends or family in the subject area that will be willing to help you, that may be the way to go and not too risky.