What's the best order to start assembling a team, and where does the purchase of the property fit it?

While the level of finish varies by the clientele, what goes on in the wall and floor assemblies  (the important stuff) to provide a safe, healthy and sustainable home is the same. 

I like the ready to assemble cabinets available today.

If the numbers make sense and you assemble the right team, you can invest out of state quite easily.

If you have yet to assemble the team of boots in the ground I would reccomend the flight even more, to see the property and shake hands with "the team".

When I did this two months ago they knew nothing about the new Title 24 energy requirements (mainly 1.5-2kw PV solar mandate roughly $4k after fed tax credit) that go into effect January 1 nor the new assembly bills (SN 13 then as yet unsigned).

Insurance is your first line of defense, but only an entity like an LLC, or better yet, a network of entities and trusts assembled by an experienced asset protection attorney, can truly eliminate the threat of a lawsuit.I also discussed this on the BP podcast some time ago, might be worth a listen.

I used to assemble land for commercial developers.

Doing it poorly will make you not want to get up in the morning, and most landlords do it very poorly.Rather than trying to source and then assemble all the key components of a comprehensive and bulletproof property management system (e.g., lease management, repair management, payment processing, lease renewal management, etc.), find someone who already does that and then let them do their job.That way, you can focus on your job: finding great deals!

Here is a list of lenders I've assembled over the years who offer loans to retirement accounts, you may find some lenders on the list that you were not aware of:https://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/2810/50272-lis...Good luck with your venture!