I own a LTR in central Houston that I think would be pretty successful as an STR based on the AirDNA data.

I will avoid sharing names, some of them contacted me here on BP, so they know who they are. 

Caution: you said the magic words "I'm in California" so every out of state real estate agent and probably wholesaler on BP is going to contact you. 

If you send me a DM, I can ask around my contact there to see if they have a recommendation.Disclaimer: While I’m a licensed attorney, I’m not your attorney.

That person is responsible for anyone one else that comes into contact with your property.I suggest using a service like Mayistay.

I’m exploring ways to automate my deal analysis process and was wondering:1.Is there a way to programmatically pull MLS data?

I am contacting some attorneys right now to get more info.

Private lending, if done effectively could give a beginner the contacts, experience and market insight to be ready for the right value add buy and hold.

You got some solid advice above check with your lender and get in contact with an attorney like @Bob Floss II who can help setup the OA.Assuming there is no pushback from your lender, you should be able to do a quit claim deed to retitle. 

Hard to say if it’s a good deal without the most important piece of data, what is the fair market value?