@Oscar Song I invest in Austin and am seeing lots of Californians move this way.

Elvis and his wife, Priscilla, lived in the home with their daughter, Lisa Marie, in the early 1970s, composing many of his hit songs within those walls.

As for going after the rent you would assign the debt to a collections agency or have an attorney file for a judgement and then they will try to garnish wages to collect the money. 

@David Song and @Marc DesrosiersThank You !

I'm aware that in financing these properties under my name as a private investor also exposes me to additional risk across all properties should one experience financial issues (i.e. tenant forgoing payments/ major property repair) since they are all tied under me. 

I am in touch with agents and wholesalers to locate deals, but who should I look for for go/no go?

That's exactly what I was looking for. Going

The reason for going this direction is because it has always been an interest of mine.

Upon re=reading it, some good points were made for going this route, such as minimizing capX and having someone around to "watch" the property. 

I can't answer directly, but building code-wise, any credits/rebates you could get from the city for going either direction?