Around these parts, lease options are seen as last ditche effort to get a unit sold vs rented or sold through normal channels.

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I've lined up partners strategically both capital and labor partners willing to work with me, were solidifying everything on paper officially next week.we will be doing a deal rather quickly which is very exciting i have been looking at properties non stop day and night and any chance i get.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2013/04/14/best-real-estate-books/BP official Top 20.

I do not know the proper channels to follow and move forward and would love to intern with someone in the NJ area.

One of the members of the partnership DOES have a broker's license--would it be legal for us to officially call him the property manager, and I would work under him as an "employee", but I'm really the one doing all of the actual work involved?

One was at 17K and I was at 15K that was the closest.On top of that of the claims I filed even none of them meet deductible so I got zero from it, all the carriers mailed me letters demanding to see documentation of the repairs including licensed contractor official invoices, before and after pictures etc...so you won't "pile on" the claim on the next hurricane.There is also one carrier I think it's called People's Trust which is becoming popular now in FL and there is a lot of talk about their "First Response", since if you go with them you have to call their first response team or you forfeit your claims. 

The night before our official move-in date, the landlord provided our agent with keys so we could move some boxes in the garage and get a pre-emptive start on the move. 

Sounds as though you already have prior experience in different areas of real estate, very interested to hear how you will channel your knowledge base from those areas into investing.Feel free to PM me if you'd like to chat about Birmingham!

While I don't have an official accountability partner, I have been telling everyone I know about my plans to invest to help give me that external accountability to follow through.