This involves additional registration fees, annual reports, and possibly hiring a registered agent in the state where the property is located.6.

Let me explain that better, imagine your rehab is $100k, you would need to do part of the rehab, maybe $10k, and then you can get the funds for those first $10k reimbursed so you can keep progressing with the rehab.Given your experience, I would recommend you start with a moderate or light rehab, mostly cosmetic work so that you can do it yourself and won't get your profit decreased by hiring third parties.

@Sri VoodiAs long as you do none of the work on the property and hire a contractor - that’s one caveat to make sure you are compliant

I used to have several out of state investors who would buy houses in Memphis via the online tax sale auction, then hold them for a year so the redemption period ended, then they would hire an attorney to "quiet" the title which would take 4-6 months and cost roughly $5000 but then they had clear title and would sell it "as-is" to other investors or hire me and list it on the MLS and get higher offers. 

Or as my wife likes to call it: "man-sitting"Contractors unwilling to execute on what you hired them for (I.e. current flip, cabinet installers were supposed to put up fill and crown.  

@Bill HamptonI hired a guy off BP for accounting and it was an absolute nightmare.Would HR block be fine for me currently with only 1 STR?

If you think a lawyer is expensive, then you should see how much it will cost you to "not hire" a lawyer. 

There really is a shift between the 'retail' mindset and the more of a business to business professional mindset that is critical to understand when hiring professional services like this. 

I'm deciding if I want to be the general contractor or hire one.

If you just hire the cheapest or first PMC you speak with and it turns into a bad experience, please don’t assume ALL PMC’s are bad and start trashing PMC’s in general.