Any insights, advice, or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

Hi James,I personally don't have enough experience to answer your question, but there is some helpful stuff in a similar discussion here: http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/52/topics/1779...You will find related discussions to any forum discussion you are reading at the bottom of each forum discussion page, and they can often help you find posts that answer your question.  

What I was getting at is that even investing "out of state", let alone out of the country, is more difficult when you don't have any personal connections and even more difficult with your first property.

I know my personal tax accountant isn't knowledgeable enough for property investment write-offs.

Quote from @Michael Challenger: I have no qualms with hard money lending, but I need to learn more about the process and structure to these for typical deals so that I am more comfortable and in a position to reduce my personal risk and risk to investors as much as possible.

Explore my personal favorites, Set For Life by Scott Trench or The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, for invaluable financial insights.3.

Here’s my perspective based on personal experience.For some context, I’ve been investing in real estate since 2019, primarily in Detroit, while living in California.

Quote from @Elizabeth King: I have a property in my personal name that I plan to rent annually. 

It's important to understand that a person can sue another person, but that doesn't constitute a judgment.

Does anyone know stats on this or have personal experience in this region?