In this era of increased rates, obtaining properties that will produce a good return are harder to find and often involve quite a bit of work.  

As far as the sale of a property with a mortgage on it, that all gets sorted out at close. ie, you bring your money, the bank gets what they have coming, the realtor gets what they have coming (if there's one involved) and the seller gets the rest.

Understand the fees involved and calculate the total cost for an entire year of management so you can compare the different managers.

Your profile says you are from CA, are you a long distance investor or are you local?  

Creative financing doesn't involve the bank, the appraiser, the inspector or concessions generally speaking.

Add in community involvement any way you can.

Per this NY Times article, the average American knows around 600 people.https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/19/science/the-average-american-knows-how-many-people.html#:~:text=The%20average%20American%20knows%20about,do%20you%20know%20named%20Kevin%3FPer the US Census Bureau, the average American moves 11.7 time in their life, which based upon an approximate lifespan of 84 years, works out to be about every 7 years.https://www.census.gov/topics/population/migration/guidance/calculating-migration-expectancy.html#:~:text=Using%202007%20ACS%20data%2C%20it,one%20move%20per%20single%20yearSo, if the average American knows 600 people and they each move about every 7 years, that means that the average American knows around 85 people that move in any given year.How many of those moves do you want to be involved in?

If a trainer won't do that, and if a guaranteed property isn't involved, it goes nowhere. 

Understand the fees involved and calculate the total cost for an entire year of management so you can compare the different managers.

(most hard money loans require 10-15% down depending on the split between purchase price and rehab). but that is both (1) risky and (2) expensive, as you're paying interest every month on 100% of the borrowed funds. private money is fine, you're just bearing a lot of risk and also involving the relationship in your very first deal.