I read the reviews of the flashcards for example, and apparently they are for a broker exam, an appraiser exam, etc. and people were having to sift through and pull the ones they did not need.

You will hear many different solutions and methods, so you have to sift them some and see what works best for you and the tenant.I have some classics of Landlord Lit blog post and can send you another recommendation or two. 

After sifting through all the information and trying to imagine what it would be like to live in a to-code basement suite below the main floor, I think it would be a pretty loud place to live.

For example let's say you are a tenant and you have an 800 credit score and plenty of income you are going to use the user friendly interface on Zillow or the other big websites instead of sifting through individual listings on Craigslist. 

Some of them you just have to sift through looking for the nuggets.

I've sifted through a huge pipeline of deals and have narrowed it down to two.

I have been searching many sites and sifting through podcasts to learn but they all seem to only help those who are already in.

I'm actually talking with my architect and zoning with the city abou changing the plans due to the sifting market.

It's your job to sift through the all the emails of deals until you find the best deal that makes the most sense. 

I really don't have as much to offer as a lot of the folks on here, but I'd definitely recommend sifting through the forums that interest you and reaching out to people that are talking about the ideas you have.