@Eric Coats, to answer your specific questions, estimating expenses are pretty simple. 

It seemed like most the folks you have on staff are CPA or other, but no specific legal experts.

For a long term investor:Would it make sense if you could buy the home at a steep discount and then let the owner stay rent free for a specific period of time?

There is no specific IRS-mandated minimum holding period for a property acquired through a 1031 exchange before you can retitle it, that's why it's hard to find an answer. 

I'm not familiar enough with RDU to give you specific areas or submarkets. 

The specific property I am looking at right now is netting from PadSplit to the current owner  between $5k-$6k per month.

Not sure of specifics.

Property taxes and insurance costs are best obtained through local county websites or reaching out to insurers directly for quotes specific to the area.Tools like BP Pro and Reventure can be helpful for an overview, but it’s a good idea to validate their data against primary sources to ensure accuracy.

Hello Doug, I am not a real estate attorney nor is this legal advice.Unless someone's state has specific laws banning contract assignments you should be fine doing the following.  

If you have any tips, resources, or advice for someone just starting out, I’d greatly appreciate your insights.Some specific things I’m working on right now:Building a strong buyers list.Identifying motivated sellers and honing my outreach.Learning the ins and outs of structuring win-win deals.I’m open to partnering, collaborating, or just grabbing coffee to exchange ideas.