The cap rate is 7.8% and price per square foot is $285, which also seems to be lower than much of what is on the market for renovated houses- new renovations are ~$400+ I'm projecting our ROI will be 8.8%, using the current rents.We're having an engineer inspect the house tomorrow, and our lawyer is reviewing the leases...

You will probably need to see a lawyer at some point. 

The least common is a letter from a lawyer or CPA, these are usually difficult to obtain.In regard to proving a negative.

I don't know what that is but it should be easy to find on the IRS website or from a CPA or lawyer.

@Joel Owens so can someone go through a HML for a joint venture or must that be set up between a private money source and the borrower through a RE lawyer?

It is our job to catch those folks when screening to ensure they never move-in in the first place {BTW: It's not just working class tenants, or those on assistance, who are hard on properties, we had a young, hot-shot, lawyer cause unbelievable damage to a freshly renovated flat in just six months}.

I just wanted to get a few opinions on the importance of a good CPA or Lawyer.

Anyone know of a good lawyer who has dealt with real estate deals?

Hence, there might be different fees involved so I am going to just start with the traditional loan/mortgage then go backwards to Lawyers fees.

I'm not a lawyer or CPA, but here's my research:First, this next link notes that construction (I read this as property management as well) in another state is regarding as conducting business in that state, so 'someone' is paying state taxes should they exist.http://smallbusiness.findlaw.com/incorporation-and-legal-structures/conducting-business-as-a-corporation-or-an-llc-out-of-state.htmlNext, a CPA I trust wrote me:The filing requirements for nonresidents is predicated on the manner in which the underlying entity (the property developer’s or crowdfunder’s LLC) files its tax returns.