I occasionally get requests to manage commercial and love to have a referral source. 

Findlay is a real oppotunity beause you’ve got a combination of stable job sources, a decent population size, and often lower acquisition costs compared to bigger metros.About choosing an agent..

This requires a dedicated effort sourcing and analyzing hundreds of deals to find the one or two worth pursuing.  

And i found launch control but the minimum is $500 a month, but they use cross-referencing data across sources to find the most accurate contact information by using a person's name and address to find their phone number, real address and email by accessing public databases, phone number directories, credit reports, utility bils, public tax records, and social media profiles. this is waaay expensive for me as a beginner. what do you suggest or if anyone has any suggestion I'd greatly appreciate it.??

Lenders desperately need/want business especially in this interest rate environment (right now, the main source of mortgage loan business in Florida is rehab financing as a result of the hurricane damages) and one way the big players differentiate themselves is by streamlining the process.

The good thing about CA, is once you do source a deal, you are pretty much set.

However, seeing as though I have already sourced the deal myself, would it still be in my best interest to use a realtor for this transaction if it works out? 

Like others have said, you need to find alternative lead sources to find a decent deal.

I recommend researching the average appreciation over the past 10 years in your target area to get a clearer picture.As you know, in real estate, ROI comes from multiple sources: Home Appreciation:  Reno Appreciation: Value added through renovations or improvements (usually just in the first year).

My favorite source is Navy Federal for its long draw period of 20 years, and Figure for its fast funding.