Read all (most) of the books, listened to hours or podcasts and audio books, and now I am ready to get going. 

Build a quality, tenant attracting property, build that cash flow, and then go rinse & repeat.

Keep your eye on the costs involved and while your at it check out the well and the water quality as you don't need any more surprises. 

I was impressed with the quality and, more importantly, the attitude of the articles.

Its about quality of life, and people are willing to pay a premium to live close to the job center.Rent growth is spectacular in the big cities.  

The quality of your service will determine the quality of the people you attract.

That said, you will likely not be able to attract the top quality tenants because those types of renters do not want to rent in 4 plex neighborhoods.

Craigslist ads are free (although I question the quality of those leads.)New investors have everything working against them:  You don't have the volume of leads, you are being ultra-conservative, you aren't analyzing correctly, you are negotiating correctly, etc.  

As previous posters have said, there is a wide variation in quality and competence among attorneys.

And the LA based investor by and large knew it as well they were getting quality homes with quality rehabs ( as the lender I made sure of it.) what none of us really realized was how fast things could go south..