But then, my network is almost all real estate investors and affiliated business people.  

Try Gold Star: http://gsrealtyca.com/I have no affiliation.

be specific.Meanwhile, Try these web sites.Wikipedia.org (not affiliated) free info on any subject, including REI, legal and financesmartlazyinvestor.com (not affiliated) contracts are buried in the site, look for themrocketlawyer.com (not affiliated) free, free, free contractselance.com (not affiliated) get legal advice on the cheap

In general, a new licensee with no prior active real estate license will most likely have to be affiliated with a broker.

And then the grand daddy of them all is PM  PM will make or break.. most of the guys and gals in the business have it in house or a very close affiliation with the PM either way is OK as long as the company is still engaged.lastly use common sense... think about what price points work.. if you go super low end cheapest homes on the market in the given MSA those will look best on paper but be the most difficult over time to manage for many... buying at the Median or just below of an MSA is usually a safe bet.

I have also become an affiliated broker for them but haven’t closed any loan yet.

I'm not affiliated with them or anything, but I've done a little bit of research and it seems to be a good service. 2.

Disclaimer: I have not purchased from them and have no affiliation with them, I just thought you may be interested.

[I am a customer, but I have no affiliation with the company. :-) ]

And then there are financers, title companys, and attorneys all affiliated with the association.