At my wits end with crappy agents (Atlanta: real estate, to rent)

[Sneezyone]

OK. Maybe this is a tall order and maybe my expectations are a tad bit high (I don't think so) but I'll allow that others may disagree.

I'm a planner. I like plans. I like being organized and having things set in advance. I also like proactive, detail-oriented people with a brain. It's why I married DH; it's apparently why I'm having trouble finding a real estate agent.

DH is leaving the military in 12-18 months. We have a three year old and I'm five months pregnant. Because Uncle Sam's not too fond of specifics these days, we're planning for 12 months as that's our worst case scenario. I don't want to rent before I buy, I don't want to move my kids and household on anyone's dime other than Sam's. We've been moving off and on for 10 years now. It's time to get off the train.

I have 6 months or less post new baby to get our new house set up or rehabbed and I have only 2-3 months (as of now) to find and close on said house before my DH imposes significant travel restrictions (i.e. no site visits). We live in HI so traveling to look at homes in Atlanta, San Antonio and Raleigh-Durham requires 12-18 hours of air travel.

We make good money and have a lot saved...still...I'm going to be out of work soon (on leave for the new baby) and want to have the house deal done before that happens!

All I want is a 4BR 3BA, 2-story home on .25+ acres of land with no structural defects. Of course, a non-crime-ridden decent area of town, somewhat close to a major employment center, with good schools nearby is a big thing too. I'm willing to spend up to 150K and another 100K on upgrades post-sale to make it what I want (I'm picky!). WHY OH WHY IS THIS SO HARD?? We're pre-approved with a major lender for pete's sake!

Is it too much to ask for an agent to regularly check new listings for a home that meets our needs, take pictures of said homes (if none are available publically...a rant for another day) and send them to us by email? I'm on the comp all day (at least it seems that way).

Is it too much to ask that "our agent" call the listing agent when I send an MLS number to check out to see if the home is still available (as opposed to under contract with two backup offers)?

Is it too much to ask for real-time access to listings (with photos) so I can decide whether to make an offer on a property that will likely move fast?

If I need to send an earnest money check for the agent to hold, I will. If I need to be available at odd hours to make the deal happen (since the time differences are huge), done deal. This is why real estate agents get a bad rap. I can't seem to find a single one who's willing to do this kind of legwork in order to actually earn the 3%!

Anyone actually have a SOLID recommendation?

[xxman777]

Please use PM for all recommendations