I trust I am on the right track of learning more about REI.

Putting that idea into action is where many people fail.The best way to attract an investor is with a proven track record.  

but the investment made sense to me for the following reasons:- the sponsors have a substantial track record.- rent comps checked out vs the planned rent raise & reposition- comparable sales made the valuation of this deal attractive- the preferred return structure was in line with my expectationsI have other reasons which are more specific to the deal which I'd rather not disclose.

Go to court house, probate department look up the name of deceased, the probate records will have name of person responsible for the estate.. they you'll have to try and track them down. 

So lets say each job is 100k all in.. that's 1,2 mil to 1.8 million in capital that is needed out the gate.so lets say you need about 25% in equity for your loans.. that's 400 to 500k in cash you need to float your rehab and get reimbursed so you need 20 to 50k a week for rehab up front then get reimbursed.you have 15 loans at 12% interest or say 1.2 mil in loans out at 12% at all times.. that's 12k a month in payments lets say you have another 8k in over head tax's insurance utls gas an employee.. etc etc. 

Bet on number 7 in the second race if you live across from the track....No really.....One oddball I have read in a couple of books and even online (here and elsewhere) that may have some merit is juding a potential property/tenants by their vehicles....( not the only metric for sure but just one observable factor of many to consider along with all the other data points and best practices).If the place you are looking at has a bunch of older inefficient, beater cars in the lot, this may be a management issue (leaking oil, immobile cars, unsightly) AND also eating up the tenants monthly paychecks in repairs, fuel, etc. 

My reason for paying off loan debt early is student loans aren't immune to bankruptcy (just being cautious) and I like having less overhead per month in my expenses.

(Im not saying you pay the overhead, i.e. lifts, tools, compressor, whatever.)  

But, they can be very skeptical of new investors without a track record.  

The lawyer helped him track down proof of the renewal that immigration had 'lost' and worked it out quickly.