So if you're kind of on the fence for this idea and could be nudged either way, that's food for thought. :)

Hi David, thank you for this it is an interesting read and there is lots of good food for thought.But for me I am not a fan of Syndication, (yet) and I do believe that the main reason for this is the lack of direct control I end up having.I have ventured into Partnerships over the years and with the exception of the one I have with my wife, none of them worked well for me, I understand this is more than likely a result of my approach to them, so I am confident that I can make it work, to me its a matter of finding the right place, and after a lot of conversations about Memphis I have decided this is not where I want my first Large Apartment purchase to be.I am now going to expand my search into Texas and possibly other surrounding states to see what can be found.

It's a great location for commercial suites, CVS, or fast food restaurant.

Your goose is then cooked. 

We had to get the food out of the house first and had no way to separate it (no containers and no rooms by the road for separate piles).

There is a Meijer and strip mall with good restaurants and businesses nearby including a Whole Foods that helps garner renters, owners to the area.

We have done a tremendous amount of research to date, but are hoping to find some folks who are already succeeding to lend us some wisdom in exchange for shameless food based bribery.We have a solid background in property rehab and estimating and one of us knows a little about the law, but we could really use some advice from those of you who were actually able to stop researching - and start investing.Are there any investor-friendly agents or investing pro's out there who would be willing to set up some time to chat?   

My name is Ray Cooks, I'm a Realtor in NJ, and I'm also licensed in NY.

They have great coffee and food.

@Prasad J. nothing cooking right now but I will keep you in mind if something comes up.