Would it be a good idea to get a real estate license and work in real estate or are there other options to get in Missouri to get real estate experience without a license? 

The other option would have been to get it done at the US consulate, and I suspect that would have been a bumpier road.

However, there are better options than $180 a month and $1000 for a WP site. 

Home prices have decreased over the last 18 months so there is lack of good options and values still above normal. 

If you're open to mid term renting (we transition to this during our slower season), I'd also recommend speaking with the university and trying to see if you could try to be the source for their mid term housing.

Real estate is not the end all be all panacea for building wealth, there are a lot of other options many of which will give you way fewer headaches than real estate will!

Without the high leverage you reduce the top source of return in CA RE which is achieve via the appreciation on a high leverage property.  

There are some public sources (www.city-data.com) that can provide good baseline information.

Willing to exhaust all options as this is a big fish. 

Also be aware of Unrelated Business Income Tax (or UBIT) on leveraged real estate inside of an IRA.Or better yet, since you are self-employed - go with a truly self-directed Solo 401k plan, which would be a much better option and will help you avoid the UBIT on this investment.