It really helps for any newbie in the RE to gain additional perspective with the detail you provided.

I am beyond excited to apply what I have learned to the task of freeing myself forever from the bonds of debt, and unwanted employment.

I work full time and plan to continue to do so but would like to add additional streams of "passive" income. 

Also keep in mind most people that are boasting their rate of returns don't seem to be saying if the properties are Class A, B, C, or D.One of the things that I do is look at my portfolio as a whole, I have brand new construction in Class A areas, in addition to Class B, and Class C properties.

(I've always thought that they couldn't give value to unpermitted additions.)  3.  

I am pretty sure they have in their employ someone with a degree in new home marketing or packaging or some such  field and they have the selection of interior finishes for spec homes down to a science.  

I am basically employing contractors that find leads on a commission based compensation.

And if the property you purchase is depreciable, you may end up sheltering additional income too.

Does that simply mean they employ managing brokers in all 50 states?

I imagine that the length increases by some amount, but I doubt it would be a full year since many tenants feel fine riding out a month-to-month lease until they decide to leave.Do the downsides (forfeit of owner ability to increase rents after the year and potential to get stuck with a trouble tenant constantly calling for minor repairs) compensate for whatever this additional length of stay is?