They claim they've upgraded to Stripe but I've seen no difference- they promised a quicker processing and deposit into my account, alas no change.

It's fake.

In the past when I am looking for a property manager I google to find all managers with physical offices in close proximity to my properties to narrow my search and ignore all sponsored adds that fake that they are local.Since you have self managed, you will be better equipped to "manage the manager".

Can I get them to come down in price or get them to install motion lights / fake cameras? 

Overall, you’re on a promising journey, so keep learning and adjusting as you go.

Frankly, you sound like most operators of these investments... promising sky high returns and minimal downside risk.

I already had my own business, some cash, lines of credit and a solid contractor as a partner which is how I have grown my portfolio so aggressively over the past few years.Unfortunately, $8k is not going to get you very far despite the promises of no money down investing.

I’m excited to see where this journey takes you—both options sound promising!

A few of the top trainer gurus who use to promise 30 to 40k profits per flip if you buy my 20 to 40k trainer were put out of business by the FTC.. its just not real.  

The contract promises to make payments to you over an agreed period of time.