Newbie from Ottawa

[Brad Dillman]

I'm taking 2-3 years while saving down payment to learn the REI business. I've owned several (6) homes (sequentially) over the years, but not much emphasis on investing, more concerned with family (3 kids). I own a newer home in Kanata, but less than 20% equity (getting close though).

These days I'm playing with spreadsheets to understand how things work, things like cap rate, taxes, CCA, etc. Other things on my list to learn are: 

How does property appraisal work (detailed)?

How do I qualify or credit check a tenant? Or, what would a property management company do if I hired them?

How does rent-to-own work? (not really enthusiastic about it, but I might have a one-time peculiar application for this) This is lower priority right now, more of a curiosity. 

How to estimate rent (without using cap rate)? Right now I just look at comparables, but I'm wondering if there are other rules-of-thumb, or other sources of info, etc.

When I was younger I worked in new home construction (my dad is a recently retired plumber), and still make small repairs. I don't intend to use much sweat equity, but when I look at a house or read a home inspection report I have a good understanding of it, etc. So I feel more comfortable understanding costs than I do revenues.