I can understand why he wants me personally on the hook for the loan, but I don't want to bring in partners and not have their name on a loan for a property we own jointly.

Question- New to this and wanna do a joint venture on a flip. 1.

It may not be a bad idea to do a joint venture with a few locals just to scale things up and track the process.

We constantly get comments on how well equipped the kitchen is.

The friends will be jointly and severely liable for any damages and for making rent payment - resulting in them holding each other accountable.  

And, why can't he sign the sale paperwork by himself as joint owner?

There is a wide spectrum when it comes to agents and many are constantly busy so you are smart to show up prepared.If I were you I would try to narrow down what type of investor you want to focus on and try to stick with it.

Should we open a joint bank account to do business through and each deposit a small sum, say $1,000 each, to start for these joint expenses?

Actually, several partners we have connected with don't run funds and have welcomed joint efforts on going after opportunities this year. 

Now do you see why I'm constantly warning Californians against buying and managing D'class properties here and expecting everything's going to work just fine as long as they think positive thoughts at the process?