Coming to the point the lease is coming to end next week and they have outstanding balance of over $3k including late fees (I know should have given the eviction notice the first month itself.. lesson learned)They expect me to just withheld $500 from security deposit, so they can pay other bills and they will continue paying a small amount every month (so they say). 

Of course learning from the material presented but most of all quality connections with real estate investors active in the space.

I figure as I get the X n O's worked out legally and get a quality team in place I can engulf myself in the learning and experience.Any suggestions on ways to connect in the industry?

we are all about investing in STL and providing affordable quality rentals to the local community. 

It's great to have guaranteed rent, but it's better to have quality tenants with guaranteed rent.  

Nevertheless, I think either can make a great option for you with your renters because their both cheaper, but also of good quality.

The people who really know the most are us: workers, tradesmen, and veteran DIYers who have spent more time in these things under lousy conditions than anyone else.I have a number of tested ideas on how to increase the life of paper N95 respirators and how to teach people about how reusable respirators work, as well as how to hack filter designs for 3M reusable respirators and knock-off designs readily available through aliexpress.com, ebay, other websites.I want to to find a YouTube content creator who can turn those ideas into clear instructional material with good video editing, quality close-ups, and perhaps animation.

I know many contractors who are quality people who do quality work but I can’t make my rehabs work at their prices.

I also think it might be a good way to attract a quality tenant. 

To get quality property management you will need a quality asset.