Having reliable contractors who can shoot you straight regarding providing an accurate scope of work and expenses is crucial.

Youre right, but if you are doing the work yourself it can be daunting because the buck stops with you and having that responsibility on your plate 24/7 every waking hour of the day and putting in 12 hour days, it can be rough.

My humble advice to anyone attempting to do creative finance is:Creative finance is for experienced investors who have access to capital if anything goes wrong.Learn the lawsDon't use a contract "off the internet", laws vary by state and are also regulated on a federal levelLearn the financing techniques correctlyDon’t skip parts of the processDon’t ever do a “kitchen table” closingUse the proper deedAn attorney can help you with the legal work, but the rest you are on your ownYour guru will not bail you out“Investing” in someone else’s deal by providing a small 2nd loan so the “investor” can pay for “cash to the seller” and for “closing costs” so he can do the deal is a very bad planKnow what problems can ariseLearn the responses and solutions to problems before they are neededKnow everything there is to know about Title and what that meansKnow who a "protected class" individual isLearn the "back doors"Learn human natureUnderstand timelinesUnderstand regulation enforcement (some of these "mistakes" have a 10 year statue of limitations ( they can charge you 10 years AFTER you do the transaction) and carry hefty fines and possible imprisonmentThe court doesn't accept "I didn't know" for an answer"Know that the source of the lead plays a serious role in some states and federallyKnow how much of a "profit" pushes the boundaries to invite an investigationYou can be sued by the seller if you don’t do things correctlyYou are automatically at fault if an investigator or attorney or regulator gets involved.

I am glad they realize that I should not be responsible for the cost of a toilet that failed due to a guest accidentally dropping a vape in the toilet and picked up the replacement cost.  

Unless you have a clause in the purchase of the entity that clearly makes you responsible for the entity from the day that you buy it(Indemnification) I wouldn't bother with the LLC.Good luck man. all the best!

Which is accurate by the way.

I am just starting out with a STR and found that VRBO is not very specific if they are collecting the tax and paying it to the State as a marketplace facilitator or am I responsible for this tax collection and payment ?

But your subject line is pretty generic, try something that is more descriptive like a newspaper headline, you will see some good responses.

The client will be solely responsible for capital gains taxes, including depreciation recapture, regardless of the agreement to share proceeds.

Thanks @Kerry Baird for quick response.