They claim to charge in the "high 4 figures" - one web source says it's $4800 - to join their group and get access to their network and resources.  

They agreed to pay in accordance to the lease and failure to manage to the lease is the #1 reason why landlords fail (Source: American Apartment Owners Assn).Cowboy up and stop having the tenant control your ROI.Best.

: Experts at sourcing viable properties to market for sale. 

That being said, your typical cost of capital is as follows:EquityAgency debtBalance Sheet local lenderDebt FundPrivate DebtPref EquityHard Money DebtBookie/Loan SharkOther things that will impact capital sources: are you wanting to finance the improvements, or will you pay for those from equity/cash flow?  

There are also a lot of foreign investors looking to park cash since US real estate is considered very safe on a global scale.

For example,  providing a heating source for your tenant is your responsibility as the landlord. 

It’s personal to the employees, who are directly impacted by the work culture of the business and rely on it as a source of income.

Anyone have any good referrals for any of these sources that are geared toward or accommodate investors?

Real estate investing has been a passion of mine for time with my mother also having invested early on where I likely have gotten the love and desire to follow similar foot steps.I have taken last 6 months to educate myself and currently own a single family home as primary residence and would like to expand to multi family properties (2-4 units) for additional stream of income, not to mention potential tax benefits for long-term investing.Based on current living situation, I have a fair amount of equity established in my primary residency along with having enough cash to either pay off house completely or use towards investing in a multi family property.Given that I'm the sole source of income for our household with my wife being the home maker for our two kids under 2, trying to weigh out risks with getting started now or perhaps waiting. 

To intentionally reduce the leverage more than required is a foreign concept to me especially in the San Diego market.