So her appreciation has likely been 36+% tax free.I agree that there are some (few) investments that could have had better return since 2008 but $6k month of appreciation tax free for managing a single property/tenant I would consider a great low effort return (it is a homerun). 

You can definitely set some kind of referral agreement with them that would make it worth their effort.

The duplex was fully occupied upon purchase and in an effort to keep it that way (at least initially), we had both tenants sign a lease.

Or are you in the later stages where you want to minimize your hassle factor and put large amounts of capitol to work with a minimal amount of effort?

By expensing your effort your getting some compensation, and your partner still gets to be the silent investor.

. $5,356 / $68k = 7.9% yield on costsIf cap rates on similar product in the area are equal to your yield then you didn't create any value for the effort and risk it took to develop from ground up.

I'd only take a referral from other people during live meetings where I could ascertain they're genuine investors who used the service provider they recommend.

I skip trowel my ceilings, which is a massive pain, but covers up the imperfections) unless I was receiving lots of feedback that it is so terrible that the unit will not rent unless it is removed.Better places to spend my time, effort, and money in the landlording business.

I will warn you that nationwide direct mail receives about a 1-2% response rate so adding cold calling with your mailing efforts is imperative if you ask me!

From a realtor's perspective, doing a lot of CMAs (time), and then showing a lot of houses (gas money and more time), and writing a lot of lowball offers (more time) that most likely won't be accepted (we all know it's a numbers game) means a lot of effort with the final result - if they're lucky - of scoring a very low purchase price property and getting a tiny commission that they divide with their brokerage.