Despite my efforts to educate them on this topic, they remain convinced.

@Williams HerreraStarting investing in real estate involves education, networking, and setting financial goals.

Bigger Pockets is a great place for education and networking. 

it is a public information, once paper work is done, takes 40-45 days and anybody can find out how much you actually paid.

There is a reason that most states (including Connecticut) require property managers to be licensed, one of which is that they are required to have basic education on the rules and laws governing the practice.

In the beginning I'd recommend using a reputable GC, as you become more experienced you may (or may not) want to manage your project.personally before interviewing GC's I'd educate myself on Michigan contractors license laws and requirements.

In my market they keep reducing parking requirements while removing public parking.  

Educate yourself on the local market, network with other investors and agents, and always have a solid plan in place before making any investments. 

It’s not fair that those people don’t have to register so everyone knows where they live but because sex offenders do it means they don’t have a right to live in nice places when all they want to do is get their life’s back on track but the rest of the world blacklists them or tries to hunt them down when it’s nobody’s business but the police and they should be the only ones who get to know where they live but the government has ruined that and put sex offenders lives at risk by putting their info out for the public even after they served their time.

What they do is hold a certain amount of their portfolio in liquid assets (for example public REITs).