I'm not an attorney and I don't play one on tv so this is not legal advice : )From my experience I would tell you family or not you will be entering into a contractual agreement so all ties to family should be seperate.The income and expenses you provide are a good starting point but I would need to see rent roll and details for all expenses last 3 yrs if applicable just to get the ball rolling.Your current situation definitely points to property management.Yes you should get an appraisal.Have an independent insurance quote done.Yes definitely put this in an LLC.  

I joined a few weeks ago after selling my first home and realizing that my life has changed forever and my dream of becoming financially independent is going to be achieved through real estate investing of some sort.

I started my education by reading Rich Dad Poor Dad and this opened up my eyes in becoming financially independent.

I would think that if that were a solid idea, then somebody else would have bought the lot and done that with it by now.If you can acquire a property at a discount in a decent neighborhood, earn some forced appreciation, with some cash flow in a local market with a long history of decent price and rent increases, and can independently validate that all of these elements exist in the deal, then I'd go that route.

Investing is an excellent vehicle for achieving financial independence and security.There are a ton of members from SD on this site, so don't be afraid to reach out.You're more than welcome to PM me at any time with questions.Best of luck!

My fascination for becoming financial independent at some point has been a big thing for a long time now, so I have read loads and loads of articles. 

And, yes mechanics are more like consultants every year :) We have been independent businessmen since 1984 or so.I have a condo that my wife and I rehabbed and then missed the seller's market, so it is being rented out at about breakeven.

I want to become an independent and financially free entrepreneur and build my investment portfolio over time.

As I approach the finish line for my new venture in rehabbing (you can read about it here ) one of the needs I realized besides other, is that I must have a person readily available for deliveries, pickup material, so...

arm's length: the description of an agreement made by two parties freely and independently of each other, and without some special relationship, such as being a relative, having another deal on the side or one party having complete control of the other.