. - some strategies I've seen California investors use to lessen negative cash flow: house hacking, mid-term rentals (people temporarily displaced from home renovation or insurance reasons like fire), rent by the room, Short Term Rentals. - The ultimate house hack, live in the small ADU unit and rent out the two levels of the main house on AirBnb in San Francisco (I would have thought STRs are oversaturated in S.F. but it worked for them and they stay fully booked).

Not to mention short sighted as you are now finding out.

Negotiating felt like a game of chess—except I was playing against a grandmaster, and my queen was missing.

It’s been a game changer.

There are rules and situations unique to each state and that is why you want to go with a local lender vice someone just reaching out to you telling you they can do it. 2) Better recourse if the lender screws something up: a local lender has more skin in the game so to speak as if they screw something up their name will be mud to local real estate agents in the deal.

Remember, successful asset management is the difference-maker in real estate investing.Two properties could look identical, but how they are managed is the real game-changer

Here's what works for me: 1) Posting your property on Facebook Marketplace2) Craigslist3) Talk to local universities or big corporations who may need short or long term housing for their clients4) Property managers are hit or miss.

If you're buying it shortly and THEN after you own it will it be ready and available for rent-the costs will be capitalized and accounted for with the basis of the property as well (when you eventually buy it). 

Things like your car (if used for business) and home office expenses could be game-changers, especially in your first year. 

For me, in the LTR game, it's tenants.