But we finally found one that matched up: realtor saw post renovation market and a ballpark rehab cost, and contractor looked and gave me ballpark rehab cost, my numbers worked and I pulled the trigger.

If you're serious about that deal let me know, I have been looking at similar deals for a few months and about to pull the trigger on one.

A lot of users here being people who have never, and never will pull the trigger on anything, so they aren't actually ever taken by or encountering any scams and therefore don't have much to add on the topic.2.)

You're just holding it against the tiles to be broken out and pull the trigger.

Many times in the early days of our business we would lose a deal, because another investor was quicker to pull the trigger.

I have not done any deals yet but plan on following through with that. im currently learning as much as I can about all aspects before i go ahead and pull the trigger. 

@Matt Bacenet, so glad you are thinking about Turnkey properties, I hope you read as much as you can before pulling the trigger.

Investors generally want to pay for direct labor and direct materials and not pay for the contractor risk (OSHA, aebestos, LNI, litigation, construction defect risk management, lead based paint, surprises, injuries, etc.) 

While researching deals, you should start building your team (realtor, attorney, lender, etc) so you are ready to pull the trigger when the time comes.Are you targeting any specific areas?

I've done some prelim analysis and spoken with a couple of contractors, but have not pulled the trigger on a deal yet.