Lawyer, CPA, Insurance agent! How early do I need them in place

[Derrick Gordon]

I have been examining deals for weeks to try and get the feel for how to be successful in REI. However, these are some questions I am having because it seems very important.

1. Does my lawyer, CPA, Insurance agent need to be local to my state? I live and operate in separate states which i believe are extremely different.

2. Are these people mandatory to have in place before I even attempt to make an offer on anything?

3.  What kind of annual expense do these three garner? I have not budgeted for them in any of my deals, and it seems like that would be pertinent for me to do so.