Looking for out-of-state investment as first time investor

[Christina V.]

My husband and I live in San Diego and we own a property as our primary residence. We target to buy our first investment property this year but not sure what market we should target that will generate good cash-flow with a less complicated situation (major rehab etc). San Diego is a lovely place except when it comes to the real estate market. So we're looking at other states (or other cities in CA if possible) such as AZ, CO, TX as better options. Our biggest concern at the moment is potentially having a property that's far from home and might be hard to manage. We could be wrong - there is also property management team who can help.

I was tempting to sign up for Peter Harris's mentorship program or the bootcamp program Bigger Pockets offers but not sure what will be the better option as both programs aren't cheap. We have a good amount of capital saved up and really just need to connect with friendly realtors/mentors/investors to help us get started. Anyone in the similar situation like us? Looking for help/suggestions!

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Christina V.:

Read "Long-Distance Real Estate Investing" by David Greene. Search for Dave Meyers youtube videos or blogs where he analyzes the best investment markets. Narrow down to a specific state and a few cities in that state. Find a good property manager and REALTOR. Start buying.

If you buy a good house in a good market but don't have a good property manager, it can all fall apart. I would rather have a mediocre house in mediocre market with a good property manager!