The income of a property manager is dependent on whether you property is filled with tenants as well. 

It depends where you are on your wealth and life ladder.

In my experience, a large percentage of them are fully functional adults that refuse to take personal responsibility for their lives, which is why they are receiving free rent from taxpayers instead of working for a living.

There is a lot of variability in this answer and, like all things in real estate, it simply depends. 

I invest in Boise, ID and do quite a few BRRRRs, LTRs and STRs- varying degrees of success depending on how much equity we can force and the type of back end financing we can find, but the tax benefits are great and it's a rapidly growing market and Idaho is probably the most landlord friendly state in the nation. 

Quote from @Jemini Leckie: Hello,I live in a mountain west state, not California.

If I do move in the next few years because of the military, I will decide if I want to sell for the appreciation depending on the market. 

If I were new I would simply stick to areas close to where I live.

if you buy it yourself and turn it into a live in flip and absolutely crush it, great! 

NOT a Quitclaim Deed, as you may often see online, because Quitclaim Deeds do not fully warrant the rights and covenants of property as does a Grant and/or Warranty (or equivalent depending on state) does.