Americans are spending there $ toward quality of experience more than ever. 

Examining “risk” we see two different additional risks.  

Spend the time now reading and learning so you will be ready when you have the down payment for your house hack.

Prior to investing, you should be spending a lot of time with discovery.

Additionally, considering the time value of money is crucial, as deferred gains and tax efficiencies may improve long-term returns despite upfront losses being largely on paper.

Would you rather spend a half an hour on a phone call, and under $200 to fix a small issue now, or the other end you people being slum lords and not handling YOUR responsibilities in owning, renting properties????

If you are uncertain about any of this I would recommend spending a little on a CPA that understands RE investing.

In addition, there are also different rules with regards to Timeline as well as identification that you need to follow if you want 1031 to be possible for you as an investor.

Since you have no contract, there is nothing that says you do not have to pay if you are not satisfied, and your spreadsheet would seem to indicate you owe him the money.Similarly, since you paid him for previous work on the spreadsheet, and the spreadsheet shows you owe him for additional work, your argument is not very strong.

I also like to use incidental insurance as an additional layer such as Waivo to cover items.