Hi, has anyone had any positive experiences with applying for a retirement visa without 800,000 baht in their account? Any recommendations?

My goal is a September 24' arrival to Thailand to apply for retirement visa. I will meet the age and income requirements. What visa should I apply for coming into country to ease this process. I was told coming in on visa exempt tourist or 60 day tourist isn't recommended. Do I need any other documentation from home. My thought was hire an agent for first time and learn process to do on my own in future years. I'll be coming from USA. I've read about needing law enforcement back ground checks etc being required. Should I bring that also? Thanks for any tips.