That's why I was hoping I could start, establish a client base and not violate any laws regarding licensing before taking the next step.Can you tell me more how that would work in practice? 

I can’t tell you which path to take, but here are a few ways to think about it:College can make sense if it’s affordable and gives you practical skills, a strong network, or a solid fallback career (finance, construction management, business, engineering).

As someone working in property management here in Northern KY and Cincinnati, I know how critical transparency and regular communication are, especially for out-of-state owners.The verification systems you mentioned - photos, videos, timestamps - should really be standard practice, not the exception.

The rest of the expenses aren't terrible all things considered, but they could be better.Cook County just balanced the commercial property shortfall (empty downtown high-rises) on the backs of homeowners and multi-family by doubling their property taxes in many neighborhoods, which is what I consider to be the longer term risk of investing in this area.Again, not looking to acquire this one, just ran the numbers as practice and want to make sure I'm running the numbers right. 

I was trying to use Baselane but they only allow tenants to pay their exact rent due, not more or less, which is not practical because sometimes my tenants are short by $100 but I would rather collect something than nothing.

If you’re going to accept a co-signer, the key is making sure their obligation is clean, enforceable, and not limited.A few best practices that have worked well for us:Use a separate Co-Signer / Guaranty Agreement.Don’t just list them on the lease as a “co-signer” without clarity.

that not mentioning in the contract/anywhere else, at all, that they charge something for coordinating vendors - while, in fact, take ANY undisclosed compensation (and, incidentally, do not provide invoices as a matter of policy) - is compliant with TREC.It gets better: I recently had a local RE attorney, who allegedly deals with many major local PMs, claim to me that, even if there is no prior disclosure by the PM that the PM charges anything for dealing with vendors, as long as the PM tells the principal the total cost, and the principal agrees to it - before the vendor does the job - this is compliant with “annotated” (the lawyer’s stipulation) 62-12-312(b)(17).If you missed it: A local TN- and MS-licensed RE lawyer claims that no disclosure of the PM taking any cut is necessary - as long as the principal is told the job’s total ahead of time, and agrees.I have no idea where this lawyer happened to find any annotation like that for 62-12-312 - I did not, at least not in Westlaw at my law library.And this “industry standard” (attorney’s words) appears to be in serious conflict with the actual law, as far as my non-lawyer reading of it goes:“(b) The commission shall have the power to refuse a license for cause or to suspend or revoke a license where it has been obtained by false representation or by fraudulent act or conduct, or where a licensee, in performing or attempting to perform any of the acts mentioned herein, is found guilty of:(17) Paying or accepting, giving or charging any undisclosed commission, rebate, compensation or profit or expenditures for a principal or in violation of this chapter;…”Literally right there: “… accepting or charging any UNDISCLOSED commission, rebate, compensation or profit or expenditures for a principal.”But it may not end there:If you add to the above circumstances that the principal began to suspect this (undisclosed) practice and asked the PM whether it engages in up-charging/marking up vendor invoices - and the PM denied it - and they continued to do business as before after that denial… until the principal obtained evidence, which only then forced the PM to admit the practice, somewhere in there a “mere” TREC violation seemingly becomes: “An intentional deception or misrepresentation made by a person with the knowledge that the deception could result in some unauthorized benefit to himself or some other person…” Commonly known as fraud, a crime.But I am not a lawyer.

Since you’re managing remotely and just need documentation, you have a few practical options that usually work well.A local home inspector is often the cleanest solution for a one-time walkthrough.

Practical, focused, just the right length!

-sourced income and how long it’s been establishedResidency status (dual citizenship helps, but lenders still underwrite stability)Liquidity and reserves, especially on investment propertyIn practice, most first-time investors relocating from outside the U.S. find that:Owner-occupied or smaller properties are much easier to start withInvestment loans can be available, but terms, leverage, and lender options vary widelySome lenders will simply say “no” because it’s outside their box, not because it’s impossibleMy advice would be to get clarity early on what category you’ll qualify under (owner-occupied vs investment) and build relationships with local operators and lenders who understand the Syracuse market specifically.Happy to answer general questions or help you think through what to ask lenders so you don’t waste time early on.