As long as the seller is psychologically willing to factor in the repairs into the sale and the rest of the numbers make sense on the property then I would go for it.  

A showing is great for the tenant, as well as the property manager :D At the end of the day it is Rental Rate + Sq Footage + layout + features + included utilities that weigh in on tenant apartment psychology, no matter what you call it.

I threaten to start giving people psychology tests to ensure they aren't crazy, but I haven't actually done that yet.

Based on that background, I'd say the following would be most applicable: Know the #s:- Accounting courses- financial modeling classes (now I'm doing deal syndication I wish I had taken more financial modeling courses) - specific real estate courses (as @Matt Devincenzo mentioned those CCIM courses have very good reviews) Connect with people: - public speaking (taking a stand up comedy class is like Public Speaking on steroids) - psychology classes and books (why do people do what they do) Be a good manager: - Business management (as you already mentioned) - Experience DOING or being exposed to it with an internship or job shadowing That said, my OVERALL advice is to find people who are doing these things and actually do it with them or closely watch them do it (then do it).

I use 3 simple steps blended with different psychological triggers.

I posted about it the other day in the Investor Psychology section.  

While they may not be applied 100% to Real Estate, I would recommend the following fields:  Accounting, Psychology, Engineering or LawAccounting is generally a little more rigorous than Finance, Economics could be another option if you are interested in that.Psychology would be a good degree to help with the marketing/sales aspects of Real Estate.Engineering would help with some of the home improvement areas. 

My background is in Psychology and I am passionate about my Atlanta community. 

AND we know from human psychology that positive inputs are 1/4 power of NEGATIVE inputs, so.... that says to re-wire people requires a NEGATIVE message to then naturally lead to the pre-selected choice. 

Also, the person telling me about them feels like they've been heard, which can be psychologically helpful to them.