A key step is also meeting with the City and/or all entities who are involved in permitting. 

Your architect can create this for you.For hot water heaters, is there a lock on the door to that room?

@Heidi Fahringer wasted time doing several calls and then a meeting with a CPA and then got shocked with their proposed fee.After even more wasted time trying to find out from them why the fee was 10x what I had been paying - a lightbulb in my head finally lit up and I asked the revealing question and found they had a minimum charge.Obviously, we were not a fit.

@Randall Ayers By coincidence I was at a market update meeting this afternoon and a presenter was a hard money lender in Arizona and...wait for it...Colorado.

To avoid going through the same poor experience, keep reading.Even if someone gives you a referral here, do NOT make the mistake of assuming that the PMC will meet your expectations, just because they met the expectations of the referral source.In our experience, the #1 mistake owners make when selecting a Property Management Company (PMC) is ASSUMING instead of CONFIRMING.It's often a case of not doing enough research, as they don't know what they don't know!

They conduct weekly meetings and most of the content is rinse-repeat.

Me personally, I’d check the contract and try to meet with both the architect and contractor to find a solution. 

See if you can do meetups and meet experienced investors near your city and see if you can get onto  a Joint Venture to get feet wet

The VA is a meticulous about the condition of the property as well, so make sure it meets livability standards. 

(Joining local REIA meet up groups is a great way to network and be around like-minded people doing what you want to do).1.