For most of us, that means learning an enormous amount of new material like management, budgeting, accounting and taxes, sales, communication, planning, partnerships, corporate structuring, fund management, capital raising, and much much more.

I also still owe about $8k for materials which are on my Lowes & Home Depot CC's. 

However, you may find that for a first purchase, not only is it a bit of an advanced practice but with the current costs of materials it can be a much more costly strategy than it was even last year. 

I have found a ton of new material on Craigslist if you are willing to hunt.The biggest issue I can see is that if the place looks rundown as you go on until it is finished, you risk the ratings on VRBO and AirBNB taking a hit.

By implementing energy-efficient appliances and lighting, using environmentally-friendly cleaning products, and promoting recycling and composting, you can show your tenants that you care about the environment and their health.

Looking for any reading material, videos, or podcasts (outside the BP one, of course) to expand my knowledge base. 

getting a little frustrated, trying to find an environment thats not built around selling coaching material that we can get from bigger pockets for free. where do you guys go to network and meet active real estate investors?

We had water damage on property that required 20 days of repairs and replacing flooring throughout the unit with much nicer upgraded material.

I am planning on sending receipts of the materials, but how do I charge for my time to make the repairs?

We don't always use Lowe's for materials -- sometimes it's a local vender, a contractor, or another big box store like Home Depot or Menards.