So if you want a (potential) high payout somewhere in the future, than core markets such as LA/NY/SF etc will be good markets for you.

Thus, the core strategy that is pushed here is to start with as little as possible, leverage it out as much as you can, and earn your few hundred per door, paydown the loan as much as you can, pull out equity to purchase more properties, and keep repeating.

Most, if not all people who buy out of state and have a bad experience can eliminate or greatly reduce their bad experiences investing out of state by doing the following Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core.

I want to start by building my core team: agent(s), lender(s), contractor(s) and property manager(s).

Next I would recommend figure out how you want to split that $250k among the different real estate options and strategies (equity versus debt, core versus core plus versus value-added versus opportunistic, residential versus commercial, mobile home parks, self storage, multifamily, hotels, office, etc.).

Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core.

Close to Pensacola's core business areas- 3.5 miles from Downtown, 9 miles to Pensacola Naval Air Station.

Plus, people like being close to the urban core - and to be able to walk to shops, restaurants, bars, etc - so I would recommend being close to walkable areas like Downtown Tacoma or different business districts in the area that offer the walkable vibe. 

Some commercial on the freeway with signage rights, plexes near desirable downtown cores, etc...

The main reason is rent growth has exploded in the three major urban cores Oakland, San Jose and San Francisco since 2010; averaging 6.25% YoY according to RealPage.