@Steven OlivasNever heard of them but I would make sure to do due diligence on any sponsor that includes understanding their background, experience, reporting processes etc.

For some background...I am currently a renter in the City of Chicago and am new to real estate investing.

I understand that because I will be taking on an existing lease, I will most likely not have the opportunity to do my own full background check.

I’m not out to waste anyone’s time, and I realize that’s probably about right for an hour of an attorney’s time in my area, but I’m just looking for a bit more info on the attorney’s background to see if it’s a good fit.

Given your background in ground-up development, you've got a solid foundation.For LPs, a target IRR of 12-13% is pretty standard and attractive, especially in the current market.

Finding tenants via facebook, craigslist, word of mouth, etc.. doing a phone screen, running background checks, etc.. takes A LOT of my time.

Post their info, let's look into their background.

I also have updated my application with a section where they can address variances to my "typical qualifications," where they can explain things like an old criminal background record (still states absolutely no evictions) or a divorce that wrecked their credit score. 

How can I leverage my computer science background to enhance my real estate career?

Well they took sooo long to find a tenant with a good background I finally used a real estate agent in the Atlanta area.