I have read hundreds of them and never seen one that didn't dig the borrower in deeper and hurt them even more in the end.

Really really find out who they are, what they really do, how much they really know.I found one local club where the two guys running it, seemed legit, but then I dug deeper only to find out they were nothing but thieves.

I would want to feel comfortable with a certain level of cash on hand and very safe gov't bonds for any emergency to handle.

I am a naive want-to-be investor (right now) looking to get myself to a good level of knowledge to pursue the field.And although the I live in the UK (where I'll invest) I've been listening to the BP podcasts in order to learn how to invest and how to think as an investor: which are not things restricted to an American information source!

Some good info for a base of knowledge and conduct your business legally but most not very useful.Focus on systems to serve clients at a high level,  your sales skills, negotiation and ways to get leads. 

I think a lot of it depends on what level of due diligence is needed.

The number one fear of new landlords is placing tenants, so this adds a comfort level for them.

I took a very high level look at it and the proposal is quite ridiculous.

For example, a higher cap rate indicates a higher potential return, but it also indicates higher levels of risk, which means that the price an investor may be willing to pay is lower.For example: An investor was considering purchasing one of the two properties.Property 1: $100,000 NOI / $1,000,000 Purchase Price = 10% Cap Rate.Property 2: $500,000 NOI / $6,250,000 Purchase Price = 8% Cap RateWhen comparing these two potential purchases, it is safe to assume that Property 1 carries more risk because it has a higher cap rate.

If the investment has professional administration, you will have access to the answers to those questions, but also much deeper vetting of the sponsor that will include personal background checks covering things like bankruptcy, judgements, litigation, criminal history, and other red flags related to a sponsor that you would want to avoid, plus other items that investors rarely consider like ensuring that the properties are actually titled correctly, property taxes are paid, and insurance is current.