My loss was in excess of $10,000 on the last theft for probably $200 in copper.  

The short sale negotiator was very appreciative of the excess paperwork as it gave her something to show the powers that be.  

Is the property staged?  

Your renovation sounds like it's a week of work, or less, so you'll get to that stage pretty quickly.

You also have to immediately clean up anything that gets on them at this stage, or it will stain. 

At this stage of the game you will want to purchase all of your properties in an LLC. 

I'm just beginning my real estate investment journey and am currently in the information gathering stage.

. - how much diligence should they have done before approaching you; what numbers should they have, if any; should they have started negotiations with the seller; what information/stage of the deal do you expect them to be in when they pick up the phone or sit down to e-mail you before you'll start partnering. 

Also, if this sliding glass door was off the kitchen, it may point to excessive moisture build up from cooking, especially if they weren't using the range hood fan.Make sure the unit has adequate ventilation and the range hood fan and bathroom fan both duct to the outside.

I didn't have my contractors in line but I figured I would call them once I got to that stage.