Make the start date of the lease contingent and effective upon closing. 

We started it about 3 years ago. 

A low maintenance condo rentable to good tenants sounds like a good starting point to me.I’m 56 and reasonably setup for retirement, so real estate is a stabilizing diversifier for me.

Yes, the settlement checks will start flying soon. 

The GC and the sub ended up sharing in the cost mostly (I think) because it was better than the finger pointing game that had already started, and realistically the attorney's were the only ones about to win...

Seller financing is a good way to start if you are looking to sell to your current tenants, other than that, you will need to run into a proper plan why you will need that and how long will it take you?

Start by asking what the numbers look like. then ask yourself, do you and your aunt see things similarly or do you have very different ideas on the property? 

I'm looking to replicate that in Houston so I can start flipping in that market.

I have been looking as well and have started free trials for both JookSMS and EZTexting.

If your clients/or yourself put the time into learning and figuring out a niche in the RE world that excites you, start looking for deals that make sense and always run the numbers.