If you use a local payroll company, they might be able to refer you to trusted bookkeepers used by their other clients. 

Payroll associate and barbering. 

-The old job that is waiting for me is a government organization and I’ve historically found most people in gov work to be less than stellar employees sophistication wise.

We are seeing issues of needing labor help, but not excited about getting workmans comp and running our own payroll, nor excited about paying for employee leasing service.  

Yes, absolutely yes, review items such as crime trends, median income, unemployment figures, non-farm payroll figures and growth respective of that, school system health, general GDP growth of the prospective market.

I'd rather not run a payroll!

Paint can also go a long way and it doesn't cost any more to do a sophisticated light grey wall paint, than it does the typical contractor beige or white.

As many of you know, most companies don't even bother raising funds from sophisticated investors (which I totally understand because of the regulations).

I spend a lot of time advising investors on what not to do and less on what to do it seems.The other problem is that sellers are sophisticated. 

However investing in the stock market (in my opinion) takes more sophistication than just "saving" money in a fund managed by someone else.