Some questions I have include: where should I go to take my pre-licensing course, who are some respectable brokers to work with in the area, what are some good locations in your opinion for a "new to the area" real estate agent to get started, and where would you recommend a single 32 year old female to reside.

Follow ups are key as the average person takes 3-5 touches before picking up the phone to respond.It might help you if you had an idea on what to expect in respect to the response rates.

There were still some gray areas in the contract with respect to the condition of the house and the bank appraisal, and we knew we would be relying on the seller's voluntary cooperation to get to closing.

There is talk to possibly change that as you may have read.With respect to gifting and lack of a step up: the impact of this could, I guess, also be postponed if the kids decide to continue to rent out the property and then later decide to move in themselves or do another 1031-exchange for something else that they rent out.

With all due respect, I, and my employees, have been using NADA for years and when it is correctly used, by someone who knows how to use it, it is as accurate as any source out there.

@Fred HellerWith all due respect, if it is a TAR lease or a TAR based lease, any amount listed in Sec 28 B 4 which deals with a replacement tenant(In many cases 100% of 1 months rent) can be deducted as well as any late fees due can also be deductedAccount ClosedWe have discussed this before, Texas law does not require any receipts to be delivered to the tenant. 

Another idea I had is to reach out to a respected personal finance blogger for some hourly coaching.

If you expand your search, with respect to distance, you may be able to find something more suitable.  

Artists were pretty good with respect to response times.We were able to give detailed feedback on designs that we felt needed some tweaks and we were able to just dismiss other submissions.

Respectfully,Brandon Scott Kilbride