And I've only agreed to put 10K down after attorney-review.Has anyone had experience being under contract and waiting for the seller to fix the violations/open permits, have the property re-inspected, and have a valid green card delivered at closing?

Did you hand deliver it? 

If you know of any Cali REIAs that deliver actionable/meaningful/relevant content to their members, and consistently attract serious, experienced investors, please drop them in a comment below.

You may get lucky and find an "occupied" property vacant.If not, you'll get your best results offering cash for keys for a property delivered vacant in broom clean condition on a date certain.If you need to evict you may save some money vs. cash for keys but that definitely does not mean it's the better strategy financially.

The products will always speak for themselves and I aim to never stray from delivering such a high level of quality rehab. 

@Benjamin Cowles, get references, had a contractor that I asked for references from and he would never deliver and I hired him anyway, big mistake on my part.

Also I'll be incredibly happy to stop delivering pizzas and kick my feet up one day!

I do all of that and more expect for some of the bids a those don’t take long to get and I pretty much know what they are anyways since I do a lot of these.The risk with this is if somehow seller can’t deliver clear Title, then you are out these expenditures but that is rare.Not sure about your area, but here in Los Angeles, I can have all the plans completed and submit to B&S (building and safety) before being on Title but to actually get the project to RTI, I do need to show I am on Title or get notarized approval from seller to submit to City.I typically make my offers with closing dates of 10 Days but I love it when sellers need 30 or 60 Days to close as that saves me holding costs while I do all the plans and City submittal/clearances.

I picked up a second job delivering food for postmates and I start soon.

The PSF hard cost came in just right, but then when you added the sitework, exterior final finish, and the crane/deliver cost, the idea went upside down.I sent you a DM response as well.