Hello Team,I'm new to this group and hope to get the professionals' advice. 

Explore REIAs, host meetups, and explore financing options.

He released another video yesterday talking about raw materials, EFTs, stocks, physical gold, and mentioned a few other things.

Any locators out there that specialize in this?

This step can save you a lot of hassle in the long run.

Does anyone know of just as good a way to learn about this business without spending so much money??

Gets my brain firing.The Weekly 3: News, Data and Education to Keep You Informed- Folks are Skipping Till to Spring to Buy.

I would strongly recommend looking at the BiggerPockets lender finder since all those lenders are familiar with the investor mindset even if this is for a primary residence :)https://www.biggerpockets.com/business/finder/lenders

Some cliff notes:REP status requires 750 hours in real estate activities, and then after you hit that, the test is materially participating in your rental activities.If it is a short term rental with less than a 7 day rental period, if you materially participate, which could include at least 100 hours and that is more than anyone else, then yes possibly can use the bonus depreciation against other sources of non-passive income. 

This is a fantastic place to gain some insight into the REI world, particularly for those starting out.