@Mindy Jensen - I’m a GC from California, specifically the SF Bay Area.

Hi BiggerPockets community,We are a married couple based in the California Bay Area, both working as software engineers with a combined income of close to a Million USD.

.: In California the right of redemption expires the day before the tax sale takes place.

One land speculation I bought 4 acres in sonoma County CA ( wine country) in 96 for 27k it was unbuildable at the time ( could not get a septic system on it) Well city grew to us The Graton Casino comes in right across the street and we sold a few years ago for over 2 mil to a land assemblage investment company.

The PM company’s in-depth knowledge of California’s tenant laws and a rock-solid screening process.Hope this gives you a strong starting point.

"California's homeowners insurance crisis is growing and spreading to car insurance"https://www.kpbs.org/news/economy/2023/07/07/californias-hom...

I am in CA so i am an out of state investor. 

- If I did buy a duplex here in CA could I live in one side while renting out the other?

I live in CA but am open to investing anywhere that makes financial sense.

You can give notice to one of the tenants, then move in and rent out rooms to further cut your living expenses.Yes, something I've considered but does require me to move from CA to TN, so big life change.