One recent survey found 40% of non-homeowners said that their inability to afford a down payment was their main obstacle.

Thank goodness for "existing non conforming!"

Just bank statements showing rent payments (redacting non-related information, I assume)?

The lack of them on listings for homes about $500K is pretty astonishing, and a lot of rentals they are non-existent. 

Make sure to check with a cross-border tax advisor on how this could impact your overall tax strategy.Umm I'm pretty sure the US presence test only applies to non US citizens who are actually physically present in the US for over 183 days, not for owning property. 

Even if you create a non-CA LLC, if you are managing the business from California, you will likely be deemed to be "doing business" in California and therefore likely subject to CA taxes.

the land bank they are talking about is city owned property they took back for non payment of tax's or liens etc.. its NOT Bank/lending institution you buy the land from the city land bank they may have special programs for locals that are looking for owner occ situations.. either way if you pay cash which is how most of that is sold if not all of it.. then your credit does not matter.

That means they don't have the financial means to afford your rental and are highly likely to default on the rent payment.I recommend you watch them like a hawk and start figuring out how to handle late payments, non-payment, and eviction immediately.

We use Stayfi which collects guest information as they connect to the internet. 

We have 15 rentals here and non of them have zombies or meth heads.