Do they value nicer finishes and design or is that additional cost lost on the typical tenant in that pocket?

After 2 years you can apply for a “Rent consideration” (I think that’s what they called it) as long as you still live there and that may allow you to increase rents by more than the annual allowance (probably designed for unit that are very low rents).

Second, in terms of asset protection, LLCs are not invincible, but I think what many don’t understand is that they are not designed to completely shield your assets from liabilities, on the contrary they are designed to contain and isolate liabilities.

BiggerPockets is full of resources designed to help you along your journey, whether you are just getting started or a seasoned investor.

Also you could start with local Plan-printing companies as they're always printing plan sets for architects and designers before they go to county and after the county comes back with changes.

Some, like the last one we got in place, used a drive by estimate of value rather than a full interior appraisal.  

You nailed it—it really is a solid business model, all designed to maximize profit (which, to be fair, I respect from a business standpoint).

Is it just an interior rehab? 

They claim to market on dozens of online channels, and they seem to know the right amenities to feature, have great design, services, experiences etc.

If you can design something like that and hit those rental numbers than you're going to be very, very happy with the investment.