While I was running my inspection business, trying to build a real estate business, and taking care of 4 rentals with family, I was also going to night school to get a degree in MIS.

can I find absentee owners and water cut off lists etc.. on PropStream?

Care to share?

But after working with him, I realized he was very systematic and mostly cared about closing deals without much care for the client's long term needs.Here’s an example: I had a $10K escrow with the seller—$5K due upfront and $5K after the inspection.

The real estate market has evolved a lot in the last few years, with more real estate investors making it more competitive and interest rates cutting severely into margins and also slowing down buyer demand (when trying to get out of a property). 

That number seems high but the neighborhood was “hot” and houses sold really quickly.What I cared about most was completing my second deal to gain experience.

I like the idea of getting a great deal, so should I take a pay cut, invest in getting my real estate's license, go the CCIM route, and find a broker to sponsor me until I'm a CRE broker and earn of the commission and get into bigger deals as a GP?

If that investor hadn't planned it carefully and re-invested that money into the property or even the purchase of another then a recapture fee would hit them hard. 

Yes you do have to be a little careful when you re-key them.  

Many tenants will cut their nose off to spite their face and move, rather than accepting a fair increase:(What does Zillow say the rent should be?