I'm not trying to take credit for organic rent growth because that doesn't tell me if I should have or should not have done the renovation project.

Anita,The organization that you would contact in most states is the Insurance Dept. 

I also worked for the Columbus Region economic development organization for several years and have been a Franklin County foster parent for three years.

If your intent it primarily to resell (the definition of a fix n flip) then you can't 1031 it.But that being said, there are a bunch of my clients over the years who have shifted their model slightly so they can get the adrenaline rush of fixing and the tax deferral of 1031.  

Examples - owner occupied loans for house hackers, specific market knowledge (ie - friend of mine that ice fishes and bought a short term rental cabin in an ice fishing spot that you and I would never know of), ability to do renovation on your own or cheap, contacts with local companies or organizations that would be a tenant source for mid term rentals, ways to source off market deals, etc.Whatever it is, figure that out and get started.

Let's address your questions:Question #1: Setting up an LLC for your real estate rental business is a prudent step for liability protection and organization.

Deborah Saddler, the information that I'm organizing at this time is more based around RE definitions and concepts, as opposed to formulas in Excel.

Find some land cheap , then resell it for more .   

Appreciation (forced and organic) 

Focus on building a relationship with the owner and the deal will happen organically