Or to truly get some expertise behind you for credibility and build a brand, work with an attorney and draft up both the promissory note and a joint venture for good measure.

You have learned a lot and gained expertise so you can show some of what you have done to others.5.

Expertise is required and most people do not complete the process and others quit within their first year.

And until you are comfortable with all the paperwork, I highly recommend you have a trusted mentor, or you hire a quality real estate attorney, to advise you in order to protect your interests.  

I’m looking for a good asset protection attorney.

Until then, get a good umbrella liability policy that will protect you in case someone slips and falls etc...

The only reason I want it in an LLC is to protect my personal assets from litigation.

However, I do not believe I am the right investor as flipping is not my expertise.

All you need is a real estate license.But seriously, real estate laws are put into place to protect consumers. 

A lender will take them all as they want the max protection they can get, but what if they really only need two for cross-collateraliztion?