Always make sure the property will give at least $200 per unit of pure cash flow.

We invest through two methods, pure rentals, and personals turned rentals.

Our goal is to combine personals turned rentals and pure rentals into a cash flow for early retirement. 

Our portfolio with a mix up personal turn investment and pure investments make 25% gross before maintenance and 42% gross before maintenance when you do principle.

If it's not purely an investment and maximizing cash flow is not your goal, then a manager is probably not a bad idea. 

Our model is buy and hold real estate through pure rentals, personals turned rentals all being class A properties so smaller margin but lower expenses.This site has tons of great sources.

Buying something and crossing your fingers hoping it will appreciate is pure speculation.

Trade or business activities are non-passive income, such as flipping properties, new construction for sale, and any kind of just pure buy/sell. 

I don't think trying to time the market is wise, unless you are purely a speculator.

For the split, I'd say going pure business mind of it, what does it all cost and return without the partnership, what will it be with the partnership, then what is what each brings to it worth and make some agreement the matches the differential, that would be my max split.