She didn't seem terribly knowledgeable about what she did, and I suspect that it's going to be on me to find out how to rectify the situation if I want any chance of a deal.

Very positive group and lots of knowledgeable people in it!

My long winded answer can be summarized by the following; I hope my detailed insight gives you better knowledge into the industry that could help on this and future deals.

I am just starting out as a real estate investor in Colorado, I've been focusing on the educating myself currently and it dawned on me that taking some real-estate courses and possibly getting my license may benefit me and if anything give me access to MLS postings and just more knowledge and understanding of real-estate.

I decided to stop and start chatting anyone up I could, knowledge is power, right?

You may not like this, but here it goes.People need to begin by assessing themselves first, thier circumstances, education/knowledge of RE, thies ability to borrow, thier credit, thies ability to meet and work with people, thier understanding of business in general and the community inwhich you expect to work in.

As solid team of 5 new kids to keep each other motivated, we can consult each other and pool experiance, knowledge, and maybe resources.

A C Corp is the most complex, doubt most new folks aren't going to be writing thier own stock certificates and, they can't do thier own taxes, but that's a plus for CPAs (not many newbies are GAAP knowledgable) and insurance can be more costly.

Just relocated from North Carolina and looking to gain some knowledge on no money options for RE investing.

My gut tells me next time that I'd rather pay less for a good enough home that can attract a wider pool of tenants.I'm excited to see how this all plays out, learn and apply my knowledge toward future deals.