You don't need to know everything to get started; you need a foundation to build on, and the rest will come through experience and then refining your education.You can build a basic understanding of investing in 3-6 months.

It’s hit and miss, really need to deeply understand what they offer, if they will work for you or against you, whether they sign the lease or you (I prefer me, to reduce that lock jn). 

In most of those cases, their broker took a high fee and the investor didn't end up with a great deal.Here are a couple of things that are a tipoff you are not working with a broker with your interests at heart (1) they want to pull your credit before having a conversation, or (2) they send you a long list of things you need to provide them before learning about you and your deal.The conversation should start with why you are interested in REI, then understanding your strategy to get there.

Understanding what a good deal looks like.

This is correct, so I would disclose every aspect of the sub to and how it relates to the seller, perhaps going so far as to insisting the seller sign off on an acknowledgment that he understands the ramifications.  

I understand you don't need a lot of space, but you are paying someone else's mortgage.I would start with a fixer-upper investment, up to four units.

I do understand that not partnering pushes back your timeline substantially...I'm in the slow and steady wins the race and stay small, own it all camp, though. 

.- Understand what you value . . . do you want to have a phone call from the PM every Friday? 

Also any tips for automating this as much as possible and how to protect the property financially and property management would be appreciated.I ALMOST understand the rental arbitrage strategy if building a company scaling with say 30 + units and looking for high short term cash flow.  

After researching the basics, I am looking forward to understanding the realistic steps in concluding a first deal.