Honestly, it has felt a little manufactured to me to always refer to "the owners" as an evil group of people who I blame for everything.

@Ned CareyThank you, I’m so glad to have finally found a group of people to be able to ask all of these questions.

If possible, find a local meetup group.

Do I call firms, lenders, get a group of people together to go in on this deal and write that within the contract?

(Full disclosure), I am part of the group and love the founders, but can honestly say they have helped me grow in the space.

That's great, except for the competition.It's a little farther away, but I think a lot fewer Boston people are trying to buy properties in Smithfield, Scituate, Johnston or Coventry (just for a few examples).I'd also recommend attending local real estate groups that are active in the area you're thinking about investing in, for example in RI I know there's one group that meets monthly in Warwick.Attend a group like that and make it a goal to meet (best) or talk to on the phone (less desirable but still good) investors who are local to the areas you're looking to invest in (not out of state as you'll be).

I live around a lake area and this group specializes in lake properties. 

The group leveraged less than 50% out performed the other two by almost 10% annually when averaged over the last 35 years. 

@Merritt EatonThis is a “no-maintenance” townhouse (1 of 3 in a group of 2. (6 total) on the largest lake in the Mpls/Saint Paul area. 

We are working with a great team of partners on the General Partner (GP) side and we have a wonderful group of investors on the Limited Partner (LP) side.We worked with a great team to help make this deal go forward - from the debt broker, to the attorney, to the title company, to the property manager, to the insurance agent, to the lender, to the commercial real estate broker, and others!