I already know that your tax pro will say "no" to depreciating light bulbs and repainting in between tenants (& they will LOL at the notion of depreciating a $2.50 light bulb), but start the "fight" there so that when you're done "meeting in the middle" maybe the new carpets and new water heater get "depreciated" instead of being a "repair." 

Doing a syndication is expensive for the first round, that's why it's nice to have a few people you trust to form the LLC with you, and you can try out the process of raising money and meeting investor demands.If you don't have that kind of time, then I recommend investing in someone else's project.

Another thing: you probably shouldn't try to negotiate a seller down to one price, have them meet it, and then proceed to  negotiate an even lower price.

When you know that number, how many properties will you need to acquire each year over the next ten years to meet your goal? 

There are many companies out there.I use Quest IRA. they are very knowledgable and helpful - they have free workshops and classes in Houston@Carl Fischer company CamaPlan is a good sourceIf you already have a company you like, I would see if there is a local REIA Group or IRA Group that meets in your area and go to some of the networking events. 

So my main questions are:1) What do I need to do to meet my goals?

So I live in this market, have started attending meetings and will continue to do so.

Have you gone to any RE investing meet ups?

Meet up is a good place to start looking for groups.

@Bruce May, I spoke with you briefly at the SDCIA meeting/seminar.