Some of the best tenants I have had did not fit all the rules of thumb.Best of luck.

Plus for Bay area folks the fact that you can scoot over and meet them in person is a plus.Good company  and if anyone can make it work in todays market its them .. in my opinion and again I am an investor so take that with a grain of salt..Go meet with them.. do your due diligence and if you think its a fit jump aboard.

The worst tenant I ever rented to fit this concern exactly. 

If the investment isn’t a fit for you, don’t do it.

So most agents are only putting about half of that $12k in their pocket, and out of that $6k they have to cover all of their operating expenses: licensing fees, MLS/ Realtor Association fees, continuing education classes to stay compliant with licensing requirements, monthly "desk" fees/ technology fees to their brokerage, health insurance for themselves and their family, errors and omissions insurance (required), marketing, car, car insurance, gas, clothes, computer/ software, cell phone, closing gifts, signs, photography, staging if they offer that, etc.

At the end of the day, it wasn't the right fit.  

There seems to be a bit of hostility here from the contractors, and this was really just a question so I could better understand and more easily work with contractors.This question was for a first-time encounter with a new contractor not recommended to me by anyone I know.I am happy to give weekly checks for progress, purchase all materials upfront including all the fittings, nails, caulk, and whatever else the contractor chooses.

Next, I'd start looking for a market that will fit your needs & do some research on the market's economic divers / population rates & other things pushing the market to grow & take a trip out there to get a lay of the land. 

Most home owners are only familiar with California Closets pricing and automatically perceive closet fit outs as being expensive.

If so, invest.Then ask yourself if you're financially fit; can afford this property to make it 1.25 DSCR and have significant reserves for vacancy, capex, lead times, etc.