For our ADU (garage conversion), I am handling the design/engineering and then selecting a final contractor once its permitted and ready to go. 

How did you handle it?

Sometimes, just offering to handle some basic admin work or help with marketing can get your foot in the door.If you’re not sure where to begin, you could take a quick online course to brush up on the tools or skills you think might be useful.

Credit checks tell you some sense of how they handle their money.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but when you look at the facts of what money was invested in and how it was handled, it leaves little to hope for.The only potential to get anything back is a potential SEC / FBI investigation to see if any fraud was at play where other assets of Norada is possibly garnished to pay back investors.

Quote from @Brian Rocha: I'm looking to secure a HML for a fix n flip in Florida and for now and am only looking to secure for the purchase price only and handle the rehab costs myself.

Handling the contract to close process OR you could pay for a transaction coordinator if you don't want to do it yourself.Personally, I would have a realtor do it and charge the seller 1% commission.

I've unfortunately seen too many examples where a Canadian investor trusted their Canadian accountant to handle all the U.S. compliance and it cost them a lot of headaches and money. 

2) how are "assessments" handled w/ a DST?

While entry prices are a bit higher than Cleveland/Toledo, we've got strong job growth, population growth, and great macroeconomics overall.