Are there other, more cost-effective alternatives to gain similar support and knowledge?

Also Chip and Joann Gaines and put this town on the map with their show on TV.

Would the LLC need to prepare a partnership return for the dividend income and capital gains?

My advice would be to start small with your first deals to gain experience before scaling up.

If I got a home equity loan for Property 1 and used the proceeds as downpayment for Property 2 and then got a 2nd loan for the remaining 75% purchase price for Property 2, when I sell Property 2, can I use the Property 1 loan as part of the cost basis for computing Property 2 capital gains?

Real estate is basically an income producing and or capital gain producing investment.  

And, the longer you wait to act, the longer the squatter stays - and even gains some legal protections to stay while your waiting on a slow court system to act on an eviction. 

If your portfolio is large enough, 5% is better.Now, some people believe that this diversification reduces the chances for a large gain.  

*As a side note, I think maybe it would be fun also to try and identify where new technology or machine-learning driven approaches could increase efficiency in the spaceAs for my financial situation, personally, I have around 50k saved but 20k of it is tied up in assets I don't want to pay capital gains tax on.

4) would this also work to defer gains on fix and flips?