Every deal I've seen go bad is because of a bad contractor.

That is not true, if you start too early and lack experience and then have a deal go bad, it can set you back 5 to 10 years.

It’s not as bad or expensive as it sounds.

After they left she called me, they used heat to kill the bedbugs and in doing so they literally melted all of the mini-blinds and the LVP buckled so bad that it all had to be replaced.

I'm ASSUMING (a bad idea, I know) that they were a married couple and had joint ownership. 

But, I do feel bad for the students, since they are the ones that typically don't have the money to lose, but also get suckered by gurus that they can make hundreds of thousands, if not millions, by investing in real estate.

If something feels off, or bad reviews, do not rent to them.

If you just hire the cheapest or first PMC you speak with and it turns into a bad experience, please don’t assume ALL PMC’s are bad and start trashing PMC’s in general.

They arent really allowed to turn you away, but they will push you away with terrible loan pricing and intentionally bad service. 

Instead, you must invest in a purely passive way, such as a syndication.Second, real estate is a tax-favored asset and investing in a tax-favored asset through a tax-deferred vehicle is a bad idea.