DON'T think you need to buy a fancy $5-$20,000 course.  

You do need to be there if you have fancy stuff installed that way you can tell the appraiser all about it, the upgrade/higher quality and total cost to have it installed.  

The tailoring can be key, since a poorly tailored/poorly fitting suit can make you look like a kid playing dress-up. :) Wear your hair in a style that makes you looks like an investment banker who's in his late 40s...not in a style that's currently "on point" for a guy your age.

We aren't doing anything fancy, just finding good deals and using low interest debt to secure them. 

Someone who dresses with taste.

If you can dress up and sound like you know what you are talking about will possibly go a long way for you.  

Drylock is not a solution , its window dressing .

You'll want to talk to some(5+, since you're doing something fancy) mortgage brokers in Chicago about your plans and what resources you have available.

Ideal tenants are young professionals or grad students at NC State, unit is a small 2/1 but in a really fancy location and within a mile of NCSU.  

Nothing fancy though, $1.78/sqft from Sams club if I remember correctly.