Have you thought about targeting mid-term rentals, particularly given the med school proximity, or STR given the hotels nearby?

I mostly agree with your philosophies, particularly around efficient investments.

Since ALE hires a company to supply furniture, install washer and dryer but ALE is not on the Lease, this particular situation seems to be a loophole for companies such as ALE to not have liability if their hires cause damage not the tenant. 

As far as property management goes, I figured it might be best (in my particular situation) to start with a property manager since I will be travelling for work for most of next year and it would be better to have someone local to handle things for me?  

Quote from @Greg Scott: I do not like lots of fees, particularly acquisition fees. 

I took title to each in a separate series of my LLC, which is the same as per entity protection as having each in a separate LLC but with the organizational and accounting costs of having a single LLC.In the case of each I carried hazard and liability insurance for the INTERIOR of the condo while the HOA carried insurance for the “common” areas, including structural.This particular condo was on the second floor, with retail and office space directly below.  

I agree with @Ali Boone that turnkeys can be a great option for new(er) investors, particularly those with limited time and expertise to tackle more hands-on approaches.  

The only way to answer that in general (whether house hacking in today's market is still a good option) or for a particular property, is to learn how to run the numbers and analyze a specific property to see whether it will be able to stand on its own as an investment when you move out someday.There are a lot of resources here on BP for doing that but I'd just say, make sure the assumptions you're putting into your spreadsheet or deal analyzer are realistic.Make sure the rents (especially for vacant units or pro-forma #s) are realistic by doing your own rent comps; make sure the mortgage rate is realistic by doing some research online and/or talking to some mortgage folks; make sure insurance #s are realistic by getting a couple of quotes for the # of units and zip code / area you're looking in; etc.I hope that helps, and good luck 😊

And if it turns in the landlord's failure, does that mean all CA landlords get to reap the benefits or only the particular lawyer or association that filed the lawsuit?

It can make more sense to do PML's in the IRA instead of rentals, particularly if you use leverage since the IRA will incur UDFI on that portion of the income derived from the mortgage.