Of course, with all things, the answers to all these matters will depend on the circumstances.California tends to have more laws on the books and requirements and restrictions that it can be a good idea to form a CA LLC for out of state property so that you as a CA resident are covered, and to try to have your contracts fall under the purview of CA courts.

I was told, form a revocable trust.

Then literally hundreds of these of come across my desk seeking financing - and typically the pro forma looks great while the actual historical financials show almost no more profit than Simple long term rentals after paying management fees, higher interest rates necessary for these type properties, increased repairs and maintenance, and faster depreciation.There’s also a personal reason I don’t invest in these properties ( I DO finance them).  

Plus it's right over the bridge, so its reasonable for MA residents to live there full time.

Regarding Form 3115, we provide a draft form as a resource and reference for your accountant, for them to review and modify if necessary.

He doesn't have a choice.Basically you need to decide what is fair and form a plan. 

If you are able to share / DM a pro-forma P&L that would be great.

As people started chasing yield, these prices rose too high in comparison to better vintage assets.It comes down to price, and your pro forma reflecting lower rents for these units.

We are not currently offering PM services to other land lords in the market, but I think that the market is ripe to disrupt this space as there are very few seasoned operators that are set up for out of state investor's to actually hit pro forma rents and expenses.

Pro formas are just projections for numbers, not guarantees, so go into it knowing that.