Well in the technology age its nearly impossible to do this now, however before computers and the internet people did this all the time I hear from older investors. pretty crazy but hey you gotta learn to play the game!

The bulk of my knowledge comes strictly from book learning (internet/books/ebooks/forums/etc).

Oh, got a few extra questions: With the lease ended July 31 (in a few hours), I am thinking of switching off the Internet to the tenants, disabling the thermostat (no air-conditioning), and disabling DirecTV.

So I go ahead and confirm high bid by clicking and filling in stuff, but meanwhile I email my auction manager and explain I am out here in Guinea dealing with the Ebola epidemic and about to go out to the field where there is no internet and I won't be able to deal with all this.

What if one partner is not meeting their obligation to perform designated tasks?

Stuff on youtube and the internet can get you into trouble!

I now have more information out on the internet than ever before since adding my profile to BiggerPockets (including a short video intro). 

Thanks Max - yeah, that's actually what the plumber suggested too, and I might consider that as a short term solution, but to be honest, I wouldn't put up with that as a tenant for very long (snaking a clogged toilet is not a particularly pleasant task), so I do want a more "hands-off" solution in the loner term.

I am completely new to this whole thing and have learned a lot from the podcasts and other internet sources like bigger pockets.

Your brand development should help you identify your sales activities, advertising strategy, advertising budget to some degree and likely profit margins.If you are in fact looking for info on brand development then I would suggest researching brand development on the internet.