You're all very reasonable adults (i totally called references to confirm that) so I'm sure it's going smoothly so far :) Other than that, if you need me I'm only an email away.

You get sucked in by the smooth talking telemarketer who says everything you want to hear or the online sales letter that does the same thing.

What can I say to brokers to help smooth that over?

The way we do it is that we have a scanned blank check attached to our offer template, and we fill it in with Adobe writer when we submit the offer.

What is a checklist of items I should ask for in order to make sure the transfer is smooth and successful?

The deal I did with them (Buying from them) went very smoothly and they were reasonable.

If you can keep good tenants, you will avoid the issue of Fulton County evictions which is just as Joel says.If you do all of that and keep everything running smoothly, you should stay in the positive.

(although I would not expect outright misinformation from the BP blog,  whereas  investor blogs I weigh on the writers experiences)What amazes me in this whole process selling process is when you negotiate as recommended by the blogger you still pay  commission on the sale  based on that first price that is agreed.  

All went smooth until trouble came in the form of mould and asbestos.

I take caution from the fact that an ever growing number of writer’s whom I respect, expect a big movement soon. http://www.caseyresearch.com/articles/the-next-financial-disaster-starts-here.