Had a guy finish a boat race in Baja (big $$ sponsors, couldn't bail on them), rush to consulate where he had an appointment, sign loan docs, back on boat, sail back to the US, agent waiting at dock w/ his keys...

I'm am a fresh of the boat real estate investor with no deals under my belt.

As a rental your in a different boat.

And later on, in order for me to work with a realtor should I have the seller give me a power of attorney so I can deal with the realtor directly? 

They want to see two years bank statements with rent deposits (small problem as some is paid via PayPal with debit cards, some is deposited to two different bank accounts and some of course cash that I put straight to expenses (or a weekend boat trip now and again :-).

@James Stewart,I am in the same boat as you are.

I realize that real estate is a powerful vehicle to ride and build investment capital with, among other things.

Knowledge is power!

@Josh Shaw I think these are slightly over priced and there is clearly some expenses missing, but the power of multifamily is the ability to value add.

Maybe nothing comes out of it, maybe you learn a boat load of real estate information from him, maybe he says no and you never talk to him again.Literally, the worst thing he can do is say no and never talk to you again.