If their "programs" worked like they claim they do, surely they would invest their time in that, and not hawking ebooks, right?"

Look for a place that does 1st time homebuyers programs.

I use Turbo Tax and the program just asked me if my SFH properties are Qualified Business Income or not. 

The odds of you finding the scarce lender that has some amazing program others do not in the market is very small.It happens occasionally but only a small fraction of the time.

On a smaller scale, just call a local broker (better: call all top players, hopefully there are 3-5) and tell them you have 7 properties that you want to place in their rental program, and want details on how their rental management operation works.

If the masonry is too ugly, then paint the brick with the correct preparation and quality paint.

However, they will still get a copy of the sales contract because they need to do their due diligence on their end, (while making a lending decision), and follow through with all the rules and regulations that surround that highly-regulated industry, so they can prepare and execute the mortgage contract.

@Austin Hendrickson no plans of being in Minnesota anytime soon mostly due to our offseason program starting but would love to connect over the phone sometime soon!

@Erik PilonHaving a CPA on your team will be able to answer the questions you have, provide confidence that your return is prepared accurately, save time, provide steps to lower taxes, etc.

I just want to know what to do for the next year and how to best prepare for taxes.