I’d love to share some insights that might help guide you as you build your business and investment strategy.Step 1: Focus on Building RelationshipsSince you’re new to the game, leverage your wife’s new license and start networking with local investors and realtors.

You will need to really start playing the long game though and focus on securing assets that have good underlying fundamentals as you will need to get more creative with the financing if you want to keep moving quickly.

Right now I am looking at a condo that's in foreclosure and as is, the price is a little too good to be true. 2) I am in California, an anti-landlord anti-business state.

I know this is a super competitive space and like @Joshua Granberg said, the new zoning changes in western Washington in recent years has been a game changer for these types of units.

Does the sponsor have skin in the game?

The contractor says poor quality materials but that doesn't mean that was true.

Give your time to the game.

(True comparables are very limited)Thank you!!

Can be hard to tell whether its a true downturn or a seasonal slowdown though. 

and you can find an almost unlimited variation on risk ( from low to high leverage, both floating and fixed rate debt, from no to high skin in the game, etc).