Not a "hey let's read everything" journey, no, pick a strategy, get THAT highly rated "how-to" book. 

Plus you might have a good rate compared to todays market.

Have to look for a lender who will get you closed, good rates and a clean process.

I got this house at such a discounted rate because of the shape that it is in and because it was a friend who I am trying to help out.

The prospects for appreciation are limited (probably below the inflation rate), your tenant pool sucks to manage from out of state, your risk is high because you don't know what the heck you're doing - none of us did on the first go; that's not personal - and your flippant verbiage is treating this more like trading stocks than buying property. 

Location, property condition and amenities can cause a wide range of rental rates for similar layouts (2 bed 2 bath for example).

Your gang of thieves (and it would take a gang) might have better odds  of success knocking off armored cars at high noon or kidnapping wealthy children for ransom (a crime with a near-zero success rate in the developed world today).Get the case number, contact the USPIS independently, see if this rent heist story isn't really a snow job. 

I'd recommend researching areas to see that they have:- Low unemployment- High demand for housing - relatively low inventory- local job creation/booming local economy- high avg/median income- increasing population- low average days-on-market (DOM)- history of rent and property value increases YOY- low crime- highly-rated schools (or above average)I'd compare the target neighborhood to surrounding neighborhoods and/or nearest metro areas. 

The reason I am trying to get these prices is because I hear the going rate from contractors for a high end retail flip right now for a whole kitchen is about $5,000 to $6,000.

You get a separate (small) bill from Guardian for their service, but the cost is incorporated into the billing rate that Guardian charges the tenants.