As I approached it, it pulled its head partially into the shell.

So your property taxes may increase approximately proportional to rent increases, meaning this logic and approach may not work for you unless rental increases exceed property tax increases substantively.

I am a licensed agent that focuses on investing myself so when I am approached by an agent who says they are investor friendly but don't understand the basics of what I do I don't work with them.

Hi Jack,Just responded to your PM, but for others I'll note that the two primary approaches in CA are to partner with a title company, or do the research yourself.

He said to me "You sound like the best thing that's happened to [the owners]" because of my action-oriented, budget-focused approach.

I do believe that we are approaching the end of this current cycle, which may present some opportunities for investors in the future.

This approach seems like there could be missed opportunities as the partners wait for the LLC to be created.

I have liquidity from the previous business to invest and hopefully kick start this endeavor.Biggest challenge - I don't know this industry, I am coming from a completely opposite industry in the technology field.What I have, I think, in my favor, are colleagues from the RE industry with experience in both traditional RE sales (agent/buy/sell) but also experience in the REI side (one owning about 70+ properties and the other owning about 25 properties, both using their properties for passive cashflow)With an engineering/analytical background, my greatest fear right now is the unknown and I am trying to shore up that experience through reading and listening to others, but as I have already discovered, its like taking a drink from the fire hose - way more knowledge than I can consume in a short period of time.Questions I would pose to anyone interesting in providing some feedback -- Best way to look for that first opportunity?  

Since there aren't already enough options... you could also look into turn-key investing as a hands-off approach. turnkey-reviews.com provides a list of great turn-key providers.And of course, you can reach out to me with any questions as well.Happy investing!

Be available, approachable, and friendly.Is mold present?