I usually spend my time, if the seller is present, keeping him/her out of the way if needed, pumping tenants for info, taking measurements for room sizes and drawing floor plans with doors and windows and noting appliances and taking pictures.We look for value add properties that are in decent structural and mechanical condition (except for one deal that we got really cheap).

Might also try one of the stock brokerages that has intl offices as well like Schwab or Fidelity.I would also get it here in the bank account and ready to spend, before you do much work with them. 

For starters, you should spend some time looking at the property listings.

@Andrew Steffens I think we've been able to avoid cheap owners by taking on the expense of many of these consumable supplies, which effectively removed them / their spending philosophies from the equation.

Personally, I wouldn't spend money on an attorney because 1) I think the covenants/restrictions can sensibly be used against STRs and 2) because the HOA potentially has deep pockets if the officers decide to fight because they can pass the cost of the fight to the home owners.I would reach out to the officers to get their sentiments and to plead my case, and I would start building my case with the other homeowners. 

Find out what that VA restoration will really cost youSecond, you are making a rookie mistake, one that the gurus play on to make you spend money for almost always useless sessions.

On the other side of the coin, someone going through a broker or IMB to purchase an investment property, is likely going to spend significantly more than they would at a bank who holds the loan in house, because of LLPA's with Fannie/Freddie.

It's similar to the whole "Short Term Rental" structure in that not only do we have to acquire the property but then we have to spend extra money to get it up to speed.  

Depending on the investment and your current knowledge, this can take from 2 to 20 hours of research.2, Spend $400 - $600 for 2 hours consultation with an attorney who specializes in real estate IN THE STATE that the underlying property is located in.3.

If you are literally just starting then spend some time researching the pros and cons of each, but don’t overthink it.