Depending on how the water is getting in, there may be cheaper methods for sealing the basement walls from inside.Keep shopping until you find someone trustworthy with solutions.I would also consider going after the first contractor because they robbed you.

Quote from @Brandon Foster: Hello Ryan,STR is do able in the north county area but there are a lot of rules and regulations.The city of Oceanside right now will not allow anything STR unless it’s west of pacific coast hwy.This is changing a lot too so you need to be aware of that in your plans.Carlsbad is super strict too but there are some condos that are still available to do STR in.Medium term rentals are as safer bet but way less profitable.

RW discovered that most clients shop with a "what are the monthly management fees" approach and not a "what are all of your revenue streams" approach.RW competes with a very competitive flat monthly management fee but then charges a minimum of 1 full month's rent for leasing and a host of other fees. 

I think my fees are high until I shop around and then I am thankful. 

Let's say you spent a month on the initial preparation: cleaning, painting, shopping for furnishings, assembling IKEA furniture and so on.

Based on your description, Party 1 seems like the safer choice.

Lendbase, as a "correspondent lender" basically shops for and lends other Lender monies.

Rate shop .

Shop around.

Just shop around online, look for properties similar to yours, add them to favorites and watch them to see how long it takes for them to rent.