I'd love to meet up, buy you a coffee or beer and see if there would be anything I could do for you to help me learn and develop my skills.

If I move my money elsewhere, I have concerns that the property will be an either/or situation between cash flow and appreciation.

It will be an administrative nightmare.You may want to have a conversation with an attorney on how many properties each LLC should hold.For example, you may want to say, I can have 5 properties per LLC or 1 million dollars of net worth in each LLC.Best of luck - Regarding a CPA, you are lucky enough to live in a state without a state income tax which opens you up to CPA's around the country.Best of luck!

Or create an LLC that only I will own, which will be an owner of this LLC that my partner and I own?

I believe that to be an excuse for juggling jobs, which must have been his plan all along.

Backsplashes, paint, etc. don't require too much heavy lifting but can be an effective way to reach higher rents.

It may be an expensive lesson, but I am sure you won't repeat this mistake.

I would love to connect and meet up for some coffee and discuss the market or even shoot the breeze.

The work doesn't have to be "performed" per se....but it has to be an expense that you paid for reflected on your HUD.  

Maybe have them demo a load of clothes to see how wet they are coming out of the washer (not every person knows what the clothes SHOULD look like- it could actually be an issue with the washer).