Smaller banks are more personable (at leas what I found after venturing out) and you can get to know who the loan officers are so when you have questions they don't mind helping you.Recently, I was searching for a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) and went to a smaller local bank that just happen to have a presence in other cities, nothing like Chase, WF, or BofA but nonetheless they have a small presence.

they raised ours to $85.00 /Yr to pay for extra police presence. 

Without a physical presence in America and a limited internet connection, I fear I am incapable of garnering a foothold without being conned.

I recommend going to LoopNet.comSearch for properties in areas that you want to invest in and see what Realtors have lisitngs and or a presence on the site.You should be able to find a bunch that are actually doing business that wayGood Luck!

The reason for this is it increases your touches (we all know it takes multiple touches before a customer "acknowledges" your presence in most cases) without increasing your costs.  

If you get a call from the police and they ask to "interview" (interrogate) you tell them "Not without the presence of council [a lawyer.]"

It depends on the type of property you are buying and the loan size.If it is a smaller type loan then usually local banks will want the business where the property sits as they have a local presence and understand the area.Also your local bank in California might be interest in funding it as they already have an established relationship with you and deposits etc. whereas a bank might just be looking at the property itself and not the borrower relationship to do the loan. 

.- Creating a presence in the local market and working with other investors / realtors.

It's FAR easier to judge someone's character by phone than by online presence on your Airbnb profile. 

Michael, The horrible situation described in the think progress article should be covered under the legal concept of 'lack of foreseesbilty'.I believe the surviving party who's name is on the lease inform the landlord he cannot be held legally responsible for a random act an committed by a government agency who actions resulted in the death of a friend who's presence at the residence at the time could not have been reasonably predicted to have produced an outcome that would have normally resulted in damage to the property owners property.