I think the unknown it the biggest challenge.

Property is 1,148sqft, 3bed, 2bath, family/living room, kitchen/laundry.Work that i would like to do:- brand new kitchen- 2 brand new baths- all cosmetics brand new- some if not all windows need to be replaced- convert from wall furnace to central A/C and heat- raising ceiling from 8' to 9' - new roof- want brand new modern exterior look- landscaping and maybe a new driveway- water/drainage/gas piping condition unknown.  

I'd rather (and fortunately can afford to) let it sit empty for a bit instead of rushing to fill it with a tenant with so many unknowns right now.

The East Bay Area value seems to be unknown which in some ways is worse than the San Diego ADU valuation which under values the ADU, but seems to be fairly consistent.  

The AS IS value is 140K and the Cost approach value is 202K, while still the ARV is unknown.

After all, the person who was shot by my tenant did come to my tenant's residence for some as of yet unknown purpose.

So that begs the question: why would we choose to put money into a place that will be taxed later at an unknown rate (401k)? 

As a semi-experienced investor I would never pay a retainer to an unknown commodity nor sign an exclusivity agreement. 

I’ll keep trying till his lease end...from there, that is the biggest unknown, and I’m prepping for this guy just staying....

The real free markets trade like any other commodity, based on facts... and unknowns (like weather for many commodities and equities.)