You could potentially do this, but they may want to charge you a much higher flat fee rate than you would otherwise pay with a percentage.Also it depends on how the listing is set up. 

Voucher rents are strong, especially for larger homes, and in some cases they’re paying more than market.

Also all of this over a 2k HOA bill pay the bill move on  and hope you got a great deal !!!

: it's my first time buying property so I feel like a realtor might help, but I don't like the idea of paying up to 3% in commission fees (unless she can convince the seller to pay it). 

After 6 months you'll know what strategy you want to deploy, and have the confidence and knowledge to do it.This can also provide time to pay off any consumer debt, save an emergency fund, and start saving for a property as needed.

The focus on scaling at the moment is solely being driven by the desire to leave the industry that I'm currently in within the next 3-5 years and wanting to have the groundwork done so that my focus after this can be something that I actually enjoy again that isn't as mentally taxing.

I would focus in Cypress, Katy, Humble areas due to the schools. 

If a tenant/borrower can't pay $2000 this month, how are they going to pay $4000 next month or $6000 in month 3. 

After you pay off the debt, you may should have enough for a down payment and can start saving for a rental. 

You're thinking along the right lines—focus on cash flow first, but don't compromise too heavily on location.