@Nikki StoddartI looked at a property there - just realize pretty much not gonna get financing for it or if you do you will need 40-60% down

Now as we started into the work we realized the exterior meter base (10 meter base) is all rusted and will not pass inspection.

I didn't realize you held such a high honor of esteem! 

Reality hits hard on the first property when you realize that you need far more than 20-25% down to get into a deal.

Sounds high to me unless you are able to really make this unique.I realize I made of lot of back of the napkin assumptions above, but it sounds like a no go to me.Yep, you are on point with this.  

As soon as they realize you are serious about evicting them, you'll either get them evicted through the courts or they'll get serious about paying on time. 

However, after recently relocating to California for personal reasons, I've come to realize that the market here is quite challenging for beginners like myself.I'm contemplating shifting my strategy to out-of-state investing.

My response to that would be, "Yes, but do you realize the time, effort, and risk I am having to take to pull off this deal?"  

We kept getting outbid on homes and opened up our search.Still, we started looking at investing in rentals in A2 but realized the cash flow was thin.

I don't think anyone is comfortable paying so much interest over the life of the loan because they don't even realize it.