@Ian Barnes sorry you have a bad taste in your mouth from out of state investors. 

Not DetroitThey need to be able to RECRUIT to areas that will draw talent (whether you like Seattle or not, you can argue its an acquired taste -- costly and not sunny)They need LOTS of space and they need to be able to scale quicklyThey need something this new location can offer that dreary Seattle cannot (Sun and lower cost of living)WANTAmazon would love to get massive tax creditsAmazon would love to get cheap talent right out of school.So given this criteria, I believe Dallas, Austin, North Carolina, Denver, Orlando would be likely targets.BONUS FOR AUSTIN: Amazon just bought Whole Foods.

Its only through the bad deals that we learn what good deals look feel and taste like.

I'm just sharing because I know a lot of people want to invest in that state.Hawaii is beautiful but has too many people and is too isolated for my tastes.

You will get a taste of how comfortable you are using leverage.  

Be careful, if you do this the realtor may have a very bad taste in his or her mouth and may spread the word of being bypassed to every realtor they know.

So I am well versed in Washington State, but I always found the market to be extremely expensive for my taste (coming from Atlanta where a $50,000 house would cost $800,000 + in Washington State).

This was my only real taste of a legitimate real estate venture.  

The work force and available jobs are not diverse enough for my taste.

So if you’re willing to take the time to learn the basics, house hacking can certainly set you up for financial success and give you a taste of REI so you have a little experience if you choose to peruse it further in the future.