But if I put the money into buying a house, with the leverage of a mortgage loan, I can still earn about 11% annually on my investment on the appreciation, even though there is no cash received for the rent.

I picked her exactly because she had a good social and online footprint!!

Focus on identifying promising neighborhoods in the north or east bay by leveraging your husband’s contractor network, local real estate agents, and online deal-finding platforms.

Brown: I use https://www.bestwyomingregisteredagent.com/Very simple, 100% online, they are responsive if you need help.

Use the ge benefits that you have earned to their fullest. 

If you're more of a 'personal referral' person than a 'do research online' person, and this is local to you in Manhattan, KS, hit up one or two of the trades people in the "little apple all stars" BNI group.

I've heard some rumors of Airdna skewing data a bit (I've heard this first hand and read online.)

I recommend doing your research and looking at properties online. 

That's a tremendous amount of your hard earned cash to spend, and the market is tough right now. 

Mid thirties couple earning very well (more than 8X rent) with a small pet.