Buying in a high COLA with loss protection is a no-brainer in my book, but only if you expect to relo again.

You can also expect increasing HOA fees, and there may be some problems renting a property inside a difficult.You don't have any experience, prices are at an all-time high, and rates are also high. 

Now, it took me many years and a lot of real estate trading to get to this place with my bank, but that is why I highly recommend that RE investors work hard and finding and nurturing a local banking relationship.

And a high in high season!

I HIGHLY recommend you have a conversation with an attorney. 

The good news is that it will still serve as a house hack when we move, as there are multiple units on the property.Our concern is that it is in a high fire prone area.

Ask yourself: do I really have the knowledge of real estate principles, real estate law and real estate finance; the network of contacts; the experience both in business in general and real estate in particular; the time available; and the analytical ability to compete against FULL TIME EXPERIENCED PROFESSIONALS to be successful in a field where the failure rate is so astronomically high?  

The success of your cold call (or any marketing) campaign depends on  the quality  of  data (leads)  that you are using.

Or we've also been exploring moving to a district with a better high school for the kids in a few years and turning the current place into a rental.

However the key is making sure the numbers pencil out so that, at minimum, even in the worst case, you can pay back that heloc because interest on that is going to be very high.