Investing in an Unfamiliar Market

[Alex Saepharn]

I live in California.  However, I plan on starting my real estate investing journey with buy and hold rental properties out of state. Particularly in the Midwest region where the market is cheaper.  I feel like starting out with cheaper properties is a safer and more affordable  option for me at the moment.  California is so expensive..     I however am very unfamiliar with the Midwest and the housing market there.  So with that said, what is the best strategy to help  obtain knowledge in an unfamiliar market without having to personally visit all these states?  Obviously, we can get some information via the web but I feel like this is not enough.  Any thoughts?  

Thanks in advance      

Alex S.