That sure is a pretty looking bridge, I hope the local people find it to be a very useful thing.

My goal, over the next five years, is to utilize real estate in lieu of my current hourly consulting income, by building a portfolio of rentals.  

If they "sold" the house to HUD, it likely went through foreclosure, nobody bid on it, and it became an REO.

The general rule of thumb when using debt is to ensure that whatever asset you buy with the debt should make more than the debt service.  

If the software is not simplifying your life or making you more accurate, you shouldn't use it.Software does have extremely helpful features like online payments, marketing syndication (click a button, and your property is advertised on multiple sites), electronic document review/signing, maintenance tracking, and owner reports.

My net cash flow went from only $1600/month to 19k/month over the next 6 years.

In addition to the interest of the loan, you'd also be paying this as well. 

The returns will likely be greater if you source the borrower and originate on behalf of the IRA.

My wife and I just moved to Sacramento 2 weeks ago from the bay. 

The term "reasonable" is going to be redefined.