I'm guessing this is fairly expensive undertaking; can anyone give me a ballpark idea what the costs would be  for doing this in their area?

Doing so has built us a strong foundation, allowed us to acquire and control buy and holds, undertake a number of renovations, and build substantial equity.

Seems like a pretty big undertaking for you first deal.  

In one area where we invest you may only request a unit/property be delivered vacant if you, or a family member are to make it your primary residence or if you plan to undertake such an extensive renovation that the building need be empty.  

One explanation about the difference between these two can be found on wikipeda:"There are two distinct definitions of a land trust:a private, nonprofit organization that, as all or part of its mission, actively works to conserve land by undertaking or assisting in land or conservation easement acquisition, or by its stewardship of such land or easements;[1] or an agreement whereby one party (the trustee) agrees to hold ownership of a piece of real property for the benefit of another party (the beneficiary).[2]"Another helpful explanation about the difference can be found on LegalDictionary.com.Hope this helps!

The type of insurance you need for your property depends on the type of rehab project you are undertaking. 

I am undertaking this myself with IREM, but a real estate license would be overkill.

Nope, the only thing I saw were the batteries, that could be on you under your lease, they can't redecorate and charge you to install anything!

Almost all his savings were wiped out.This included money for his family, two schoolgoing children and holiday plans.Mr Kenneth Ng, 43, never imagined himself to be a real estate investor, but after listening to a speaker at a property seminar, he invested almost all of his $80,000 savings.The supply chain executive, who earns $8,000 a month, bought a "fixer-upper" in the US city of Memphis for US$55,000 (S$74,500).A fixer-upper is real estate slang for a property that needs maintenance work, such as redecoration, reconstruction or redesign, before it can be lived in.That was in 2013.Mr Ng never got the promised returns.The property guru who made the sales pitch?

It's an expensive under-taking.