You can never lose the education. 

Though the commercial-real-estate sector has a reputation for being slow to embrace new technology, several brokers and developers are hot on virtual-reality tours—to boost leasing and sales, especially to technology firms and tech-driven media and advertising companies: http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-office-space-in-your-head-1435541344

If you wouldn't jump in an airplane and ask via your smartphone how to fly, then please don't make the mistake of thinking investing is so easy that anyone can do it without a proper education.

It is good to educate yourself this way as well.

although sub prime was very predatory so those folks have a beef to a certain extent but then again many who fell for sub prime needed better primary education at the end of the day so they could protect themselves..

I thought the $1k fee was fairly reasonable compared to another "big name" educational entity,(scam?)

My wife and I have just began educating ourselves with Real Estate investing and are currently looking into mobile home investing to start out with.

This isn't a growing area, but is close to a ton of jobs in the industrial sector. 

There are plenty of risks, but a lot of those risks can be minimized through education (learning from others' mistakes) and partnering with more experienced investors.

Feel free to DM me if you want more specific advice.Good luck and get educated!