"Boots on the ground" and "remote" 50% partnerships

[Sean Tracey]

Hi, 

I'm looking to do some brainstorming for how to create successful partnerships wherein one person is the "boots on the ground" and the other works "remotely". The main goal is to get a better understanding of how to divvy up responsibilities while maintaining a 50% partner structure. My particular focus is buy and hold rental properties, but I'm sure we could all stand to benefit from learning about how 50% partners engaged in other areas of REI handle the question of, "Who does what, and how do we assign value to what we're doing, so we can both feel comfortable in our abilities to judge how close we are to an equitable arrangement?".

My immediate thought is that the boots on the ground investor could easily justify a higher percentage in returns or a lower amount of capital invested based on the work required of them. They're in the area, can scope out properties in person, face to face with people, they may very well be the people maintaining the property. PMs typically charge 10% or more once fees are factored in. Tack on some of the other responsibilities, and they might as well be running a turnkey for you. 

With that being said, what kind of responsibilities could a remote partner take on in order to make this a more equitable business relationship? Just how many responsibilities can be taken care of by a phone call, email or other means that don't require a physical presence. Dawn Anastasi and Mehran Kamari mentioned their partnership during both their podcasts, but there wasn't much of a chance to expound on the specifics as far as responsibilities go. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts.