Learn to read that data to the point you can do a quick walkthrough of a property and are able to "ballpark" a value quickly and confidently. 

Know you have an upcoming capital expense and ensure you have some capital in an easy-to-access place.

Evolve is 10% usually, but they provide very little.Do a search on this forum and you'll find tons of data on STR PMs.

(Link to Redfins Latest Data on Homebuyers Migration)"Miami has consistently made the top 10 list since Redfin began regularly tracking quarterly migration in 2017, but has never taken the number-one spot until now.

I was a big fan of how data driven and factual their discussion was.

Does anyone have experience pulling county data to find off market leads in Riverside, San Diego, and San Bernardino Counties.

Fix your lease to ensure it stipulates stiff penalties or termination for violations. 

I also want to ensure I can scale and don't want to hamstring myself by making a poor decision now and deploying the capital on a bad deal so there is a bit of trigger shyness.

Typically you want to hedge the risk of tenants not paying during the application process by ensuring consistent income for at least a year (if not longer).

Perhaps once you go through an agency you can make some notes on the process to ensure you are well prepared and can do it yourself if it ever happens again.