So far I have inherited 3 tenants who were there when I bought that were not on the program who paid maybe one months rent and then nothing for the three - four months it took for me to kick them out plus legal fees (Ny if its in an LLC you have to be represented by a lawyer).

Is it an S-Corp, C-Corp, LLC?

Would I achieve this if I transfer the property to an llc after buying it?

I need to start a LLC.

Hi Maura,Do you have a US credit, US based LLC and US bank account?

You seem like a seasoned investor, but many folks hold the properties all in their own name and while you can do an LLC transfer, being able to "wipe" your portfolio and start a new as a smarter investor then when you started is really nice if you can do it in a tax efficient way 

If the LLC is the buyer or seller then no you don’t need a license since you are just acting as buyer or seller employee.  

I will assume that your LLC is just an LLC, not an S-corp (in that case, see what @Joshua Thompson said), and "we" is you and your spouse.

It would be a lien placed on the entirety of the property that is deeded in both your names (or in your entity, if you closed in the name of an LLC).If you plan to take full control of the property, you could refinance in your name/entity alone with a cash-out and pay your partner off with their equity share.

Take the money you were going to use and capitalize your LLC.