Meet them in person and ask as many questions as possible to assess if you will have issues with them5.

What I would do when beginning my journey is assess my current situation and goals.Are you open to owner-occupying your first investment?

Another simple idea is to just have an expert assess the condition of a few of the best properties you find with the original strategy. 

Them: We’re asking under what it was listed for, and this is a marketplace.

I'm not sure that someone's past performance in the market will be helpful if you are trying to assess your potential future performance.

Be prepared for this aspect when assessing and analyzing deals.

For a short time I had my unit posted on Facebook Marketplace. 

Such environmental due diligence is typically performed by retaining environmental professionals to conduct a “Phase 1 environmental site assessment,” and if necessary, a “Phase 2” and “Phase 3” site assessment.

Got hit with a 24k assessment 1 year after purchase, but we are still cash flowing and got the condo at a great price, as well as at 3.25% interest.

A lot of investors are (wisely) wary of condos because condo fees can rise and special assessments can eat up your cashflow.