It's a real catch 22.   

If you get away with it for a couple of years (assuming you do), it becomes  bonus.One way or Another Death and Taxes - They catch up with you.Oren

One should always pick some properties that interest them and have solid cash flow, but please ensure you have a pre-approval ready to go when something really catches your eye.

Here is the catch/ hurdle I have.

On the other hand, maybe having a much bigger sale price would catch their attention more.

It'll take a (long) while to catch up .If you can purchase all cash, you can find some rehab/fixer-up/ value-add deals. 

I can only imagine the sticker shock for people looking from SoCal.As more and more young families catch wind of the far more affordable pastures out here in Phoenix, they'll just keep on coming.

For Seattle, it has the highest value growth rate in last 24 months among the whole US, and still much cheaper than California; with so many new IT companies and job creations current and future, do you guys think the growth and final value will catch up to Silicone valley?

It’s a real Catch 22…use your equity and credit to buy property, only to have a credit score damaged to the point that you’ll have trouble buying any more.

Good catch!