Here there are plenty of resources such as blog and forum posts, podcasts etc.

I do not want the income to flow through to my personal return because I want less income to be reported for better college financial aid for my kids.  

You may be able to find a financial partner who wants to diversify and not do any hands-on work.  

He was referred to me by a fellow BP member that is a plethora of knowledge and resources in his own way @Russell Brazil.  

This is a great resource for new investors.

Also have you read through the condo associations rules and checked to make sure there is not a large assessment coming or that the condo association is having financial trouble?

Mario Furmanczyk,seriously if you are determined to play with LA's rent control laws and renting in California in general,you need to find a very good real estate attorney who is an expert in rent control laws and California rental laws in general.California is one of the most difficult places to do business and landlords are treated like criminals waiting to be caught by our court system.You need serious protection with good lawyers who will help you stay in compliance and keep you out of financial troubles.Good luck to you.

I just read into buying multi units via FHA the other day and did read about the max number of units I just figured there were ways around it even if it meant putting down say 7% vs. 3.5 but if that were the case I guess it would still make more financial sense to stay with the 3.5 on a 4 unit.

Our goal is to one day achieve our level of financial freedom to be able to give our family the life that we are dreaming of. 

There is nothing a CPA can do that an EA can't except for provide you audited financial statements (the person preparing them cannot audit them anyway).