-Network: A network of investors and partners who can and will work with you to identify and acquire assets. 

You should continue educating yourself by reading books, listening to podcasts and networking with like-minded RE professionals through local REI clubs found on meetup and here on BP.

I think my next steps are to find a CPA and attorney to help me structure everything, but that's why I'm here... to learn for myself as much as I can and to find out who I need to talk to and how to properly vet them.

Im looking to network with other RE investors so anyone who fits that criteria please feel free to reply to this post.

We are looking to expand our network and are in need of painters and handymen. 

In order to do so I think our best bet would be to network with current real estate investors, and offer our services to them and try to learn the trade. 

*This post does not create an attorney-client or a CPA-client relationship. 

So I think what it comes down to is: having multiple investment strategies in mind and discussing them with your CPA assuming your CPA is real estate savvy and can advise you on the better strategy from a tax perspective. 

However, I didn't network with any lenders before I jumped into this. 

The first thing I would do is read as much as possible and network too.