Divorce is in progress and I will need a project to keep me busy once she gets prime custody of the lil ones.

If everyone else has a disposer and dishwasher then that would be the expectation and you are at a disadvantage.I bet the husband had to get rid of his wife's healthy cooking and if he throws them in the trash she might see it so he used the disposer.

I'm interested to hear about your progress.

Odesk makes it very easy to communicate regularly with the VA's and I've found that they have been very good at updating me with their progress and asking questions when needed. 

Art Allen I bet I've seen your work if you're flipping in downtown!  

You will build your team as you progress, and teammates will/may change over time as your needs change and your business grows.

I loved growing up there and am always pleasantly surprised to see the progress being made when I come back to visit a few times a year.

Also remember you'll need someone on the ground(good birddog / locator for one) in those out of state areas that you're trying to close in; so team work is your best bet. 

If so, how did you monitor progress and mitigate risk? 

As you progress in your experience, that minimal data set will grow which should in turn make you more comfortable with your risk evaluation and your bid pricing.