I am going to be the contrarian on this subject.. 1. the pre license course is valuable as it teach's the vocabulary of real estate and the basic laws of your state.. its dirt cheap and one of the better ways to build your foundation. 2.

This is somewhat subjective to you.

 I'm not opposed to subject to, but my fear is whoever I am taking over the existing mortgage from will not continue making the payments.You make the payments.

While podcasts, books, seminars, and websites offer general knowledge, you'll buy a specific property in a specific location, subject to local rules and regulations.

Go to your favorite podcast app and search for real estate, multifamily, or syndication and you will find many podcasts that talk about those subjects.

However, most investors aren't going to front money for a subject to deal unless they do subject to.

Deed the property to me FROM a federal entity (now subject to property taxes)?

STR regulations have been a VERY hot topic here for the last year (and even beforehand).

WA is not a landlord friendly state, but if you are going to invest in WA, the eastern side has some hot spots like the tri-cities area that may yield good cash flow and appreciation and still be close enough for you to go there when you need to. 

However I have had to replace some major appliances recently which had put my in the defecate and added to my motivation to sell (Hot water heater, two refrigerates and a washer/dryer).