Here are a few common paths to getting started:Personal Savings: Some investors start by saving money from their jobs or other sources of income.

Hey Chris,I have an example Scope of Work document uploaded to my fileplace which has a list of common Scope of Work items and descriptions to get bids from your Contractors, which might be helpful.https://www.biggerpockets.com/files/user/drobertson/file/sample-contractors-scope-of-work-documents

A Bookkeeper can set up your Accounting system, sync your bank accounts and would be able to work with you to make sure everything is being tracked correctly and you can keep an eye on your balances.Let me know if you need any help with your Books, I would be happy to have a chat.Otherwise, QuickBooks is the most common Accounting Software and I set up all my clients with a BOX account for document storage, since it is free up to 10 GB. 

Both the flat fee and the calculated % of the gross lease are common, depending on the size of the property.

Yes, very common in the early 2000's.

Hey Dan, Many buyers and investors in FL use DSCR loans, so it's very common.

If that person is an employee of one specific bank/lender, it's common for them not to have any idea which hits are "their" hits, and which come from Fannie Mae, since they only ever see the rate/fee schedule from the one place they work at, and they aren't typically labeled that way, it just says "2-4 unit cash out:" and lists the amount of the hit in basis points, without specifying from whence it came.

Keep track of what items are purely for the rental unit and what items are for both units.If it's an item that is technically for improvement of the whole house (landscaping, common area improvements, exterior siding/painting) you can only write off a portion.

We try to stay on top of the most common strategies(usually mentioned in these courses) so all our clients may take advantage.

There is a test called HOWEY test (you can google it).Basically if the asset is an "investment of money in a common enterprise, with a reasonable expectation of profits to be derived from the efforts of others" it is considered a security.