But I don't believe that to be the case anymore with all gurus because I know people who have attended other speakers they've heard on the radio, etc, and it has been a total waste of time and money.  

Their speaker promised a bunch of freebies on the call and is giving a presentation on how investors can do more deals with the leads they already have.

It's held the first Thursday of every month and they always have great speakers come in and the networking is great. 

I would say those that follow students is the bigger picture (staff, speakers, parents, etc...) 

The one I belong to charges less than $200 a year to join and has a bunch of solid speakers as well as high quality networking opportunities.

There were several other speakers and I actually attended it to catch another popular speaker live.I’ll try get more info for you guys.

Many professional real estate investors I know use Ki Shin, CPA , http://www.smithandshin.net/He is a regular speaker on R E investing/tax at the Metrolina REIA 

There is an awesome REIA group in Columbus - COREE I think, it is run by Vena Jones Cox a national speaker and would be a good place to visit to learn more about Columbus. 

It's a great place for networking, seeing national experts/speakers and just getting educated in the Real Estate space. 

But if you bring the operation in house, paying salaries, you're out of state, unless you have a manager who is not corrupt, or you keep tight control of expenses, you still have problems.Some years back I attended real estate seminars, and a speaker addressed the issue of investing out of state, and finding help.