The FOMO effect was strong!

Use your initial purchases as case studies of how you can effectively manage their money and expectations responsibly.

Saving $500–$1,000 a month on housing through a house hack is effectively a tax-advantaged cash flow.I’d stay as flexible as you can on location, focus on a small multifamily you can comfortably live in and manage, and treat the first deal as education plus foundation, not a home run.

Patience and diligence early on will help you scale effectively.

finding good deals will always be the most important thing in real estate. effective operating is second. 

That is in effect what you are doing and f you do not include PM fees in your underwriting.Your maintenance/cap ex fees is likely too low by a factor of 2.You are missing the misc charges like asset protection, bookkeeping/accounting/tax man, utilities due to property issues such as by a slab leak, legal/evictions, etc.The 50% rule is aggressive at this rent point and projects $82/month of cash flow.  

By asking these questions, you can gauge the professionalism and reliability of a property manager, ensuring that you choose someone who will effectively manage your investment.Thank you for outlining these points — this is genuinely helpful.

Do you have a strong pulse on the local rental market and access to reliable, cost-effective trades?

In those cases, I’m effectively buying someone else’s problems at retail pricing, which is just not attractive for a savvy investor. 

There’s still a larger cleanup required, and by your own admission the property can’t reasonably absorb the cost to do it properly.At this point, your best friend is the price point the property sits in and the pool of less-experienced investors who may be willing to take it off your hands believing they can address the remaining issues effectively or simply ignore them.