I'd like to understand them enough to at least be able to hire someone to help me. 

Or have you hired a team to do it?

@Don KonipolI view these trends as both things that people are participating in AND things that are being done to them.Silicon Valley hires the best and brightest to make phones, social media, games and apps addictive. 

Save the money, clean it till it shines, maybe basic improvements like a few new light fixtures or at least matching/bright lightbulbs, maybe a few new faucets, some paint touch ups and sell.If you’re hiring a Realtor®, they can tell you pricing in current condition versus pricing with a few minor changes.

Two, you hire someone in that area to take pictures for you.

If you're not comfortable with the eviction process, hire an attorney.https://guides.sll.texas.gov/landlord-tenant-law/eviction-pr... 

If you just hire the cheapest or first PMC you speak with and it turns into a bad experience, please don’t assume ALL PMC’s are bad and start trashing PMC’s in general.

You could invest passively by being a private lender (earning high interest), being a money partner (getting equity and a return for no work), investing in a syndication deal (similar to money partner but on bigger deals where you are one of many investors), buying another investment property and hiring a property management company, or investing in stocks. 

Again, even with REPS.

Hiring a property management company is a decision that requires careful thought.