Rent by the room Bay Area

[Josh Raikin]

So I'm looking between house hacking a single family home using rent by the room (in South bay area of CA), or investing OOS, as my first property investment. In order to do that I want to analyze possible deals as much as possible. I know making positive cash flow in the Bay Area using this method isn't likely, but factoring in my own rent will help with that as I'm going to be living there anyway and paying for rent anyway. 

Regarding my criteria for the rent by the room property, I'm looking into:

• Property Type
  • Single Family
  • 3-4 beds/2 bath
  • Single or double story
• Location
  • San Jose, Mountain View, Redwood City, Fremont, Milpitas
• Condition
  • Ready to move in
• Price Range
  • $0.8-1.2 mil

Does anyone have experience with house hacking in the Bay Area, and could possibly advise me on the following:

• What websites/resources are best to find comps to compare rent and what should be included (i.e. furniture) in the home?
• What small tips could you offer with making this my first investment or investing OOS?
• If I was interested in short term rentals for this types of property, what resources would you recommend me looking into to understand those requirements?
• What useful laws/facts/advice do I need to know when investing in the Bay Area/ CA?