I'm investing that much money into the property in the form of my time and craft.

William, I'd be happy to talk to your buddy about craft brewing!

My good friend is a roofer and always said he would do it cost plus a case of craft beers of his choice.

He has been in the industry for many years and a master at his craft and he would love to meet with your sister and share with here what he can do to get her home sold, and why so many people choose him.

It's really up to you to craft longterm strategies that make sense.

Keep stashing away from your w-2 job, resell things on Craigslist/eBay/Amazon, sell crafts stuff on Etsy, rent out a spare room on AirBnB (if you own your own single family home), do some freelance tasks on Elance or Taskrabbit - all to accumulate funds for that first downpayment.And all the while, attend some local REIA meetings to expand your network list.Hope this helps!

Often the best thing I can do for them is match them with the best agent I know in their area of interest or, carefully craft a plan that allows me the time necessary to get the job done right.

Good brokers are very well versed in their craft, usually due to many years of learning and working in the business full time.

Should I craft up the lease even though we are not sure of the start date. 

Thanks for the response @Priyanshu Adathakkar, that is actually something we have thought about, but was more thinking that the "incubator" space would be about that size but just one unit in the building, while the rest are actual small/craft type businesses (some of which are already in there today).