There are ETFs that invest solely in dividend stocks as well, so your friend can get diversification without having to individually curate the entire portfolio.As for REI, the simplest passive option is turnkey (I may be biased, but it's still true), because once your friend determines the company they want to invest with (which should require a lot of research and effort, don't skimp on research) they shouldn't have to do anything but collect their net rents every month.

And do you advise against purchasing lists or should I curate lists myself (say from tax sale or foreclosures in my county)?

Roofstock is a curated online marketplace for tenant occupied homes that was built by some of the biggest names in the single family space.

Localstake (Startups & Business Financing) Company description: "Connecting businesses & local investors"MicroVentures (Startups & Business Financing) Company description: "Get access to highly curated early and late stage investment opportunities"MinnowCFunding (Real Estate) Company description: "You Can Invest in Real Estate.

Not knowing anything other than what you've stated, I would suggest to start by investing as much time as you can in education.One way to start would be to subscribe to the BP Youtube Channel, look at the different Playlists, pick one and start consuming as much information as you can. 

I would recommend connecting to any local REIA meet up groups in your area: I have learned about housing and zoning, future projections of growth, tax lien homes, and many other topics as well as grew my group of mentors, collaborators, and a curated list of contractors for my projects.

Go to Youtube, search Biggerpockets, and then look at the playlists.

The typical buyer in this price range is very systematic, they have their agent search the market and curate a list of potential properties, most of them they will only review online, not in person. 

Or are they focused on "motivating" you, sharing content that has nothing to do with the actual business but more about curating their image?

They were among a curated list of my investor-focused agent.