I actually registered just so I could respond to this typie.
I'm just recently getting into the landlord business myself, but I am entering the game very well informed ahead of time due to research on my own part.
what I suggest is you definitely need to go to a local land lord association and receive some help there.
My second thing is I would highly suggest you get yourself fully financially stable before you make any major investments like rental properties.
The next thing I suggest is walk away from this, its not safe, nor is it stable. Yyou dont own the building itself, just the room, so you have no real equity on this property since its just a partial portion of the building itself, instead of a studio.
What that translates to is you cant really "borrow" against it in case you wanted to use the property in the future as part of an equity based loan.
Additionally, if the previous owner has 8 of them, and he is shortselling 5 of them, they didnt do well. Theres a reason why they are dumping them all, and its most likely because he either slumlorded them into a destitute condition, which in that case they arent worth it due to the cost as compared to repairs youll need to spend, or they didnt rent enough, and he is taking losses so he can get out from under them.
Either way, walk away. It will be more of a drain than a benefit.
Also, as of right now, you dont really have the liquid cash you need in order to invest in real estate. A rule of thumb for RP (rental properties) is you will want 20-25% down, plus at least 6 months rent for the first property, and for me, I plan on doing an additional 3 for each additional property in liquid cash as an emergency fund. This is to protect you during periods of time when the unit(s) arent rented, or if something happens and major repairs are needed.
Additionally, there are a lot of laws in regards to landlord/tenant regulation, and you need to be up and polished on them before you start renting, because once the lease is signed, theres no turning back.
You need to have a pregamed rental policy, you need a pregamed eviction policy and process, a pregamed and negotiated repairs and mantainence policy, process, procedure, and prenegotiated contracts on rates per hour, and repair costs for Time and Materials (T&M).
Theres a lot more to being a landlord than simply collecting rent at the end of the month.
Respectfully,
Fallenour