April is a safe month to "play the market" if you will, because the market starts picking up as a whole then but, a good reliable tenant to me always seems better than making a few hundred more a month.

A simple baseline plan might’ve steered him toward properties with more reliable maintenace histories or a stronger neighborhood profile, saving him a lot of sweat.

My “reasoning” is based on two points1- the current system of property records filing in a million different jurisdictions with expensive title searches necessary for almost every title transfer and mistakes still being made can be made much less expensive, much faster, and much more reliable through migration to some sort of “blockchain” National registry.2- Numerous investments have been divided into, and offered as tranches of the whole.  

Since you plan to travel often, focusing on systems and building a reliable team: agent, lender, property manager, and contractor. 

I just don;t have the energy to pursue litigation.

The discussion of oil & energy will be absolutely pivotal too. 

@Ben LeybovichI think in the perfect world, new investors would spend enough time and energy learning how to analyze properties themselves, what the various calculations mean, etc.

—and prioritize applicants who meet the criteria but also have a solid, reliable rental history.

This added so much to the overall cost and took up more of my time than I expected.Overall, it was a huge waste of time, money, and energy.

I’ve been researching local professionals and would welcome any advice on how to vet and connect with reliable team members, particularly in a high-cost area like the Bay Area.As for hard money, I haven’t explored it in depth yet, but I’m open to the idea for the right deal.