I love the Myrtle Beach area.Condos are a dime a dozen so there is stiff competition which pushes prices down.HOAs have their own problems which I always avoid.I would try and buy a beachfront house or 1st row house 

It is a show of faith that you WILL go through with buying the property yes?

I don't see any solutions to those issues, because HOAs have to buy their own insurance and maintain their own infrastructure. 

If you end up at out-of-state but have capital, you likely be on a turnkey solution.If you are starting locally, that may be wholesale, brrrr, flip, buy-and-hold, (STR, MTR, LTR), and more. 

Investment Info:Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment.

The ability to effectively self manage would depend on the scale you are trying to buy. 

If I were in your position, I would buy a duplex that has potential for value add, fix it up, live in one unit and rent out the other unit as a medium term rental or long term rental.

Who talked you into buying the Costa Mesa condo? 

Congratulationswhat you’ve found that both the INVESTMENT side of real estate, and theBUSINESS side are very competitive; therefore profit margins are compressed, so those “home runs” people like to bragg about are actually quite rare.  

Great points, ZharaBirmingham has relatively steady and diverse rental demand, and I’ve seen many investors I work with have success with C/B class buy-and-holds.Location is key—areas near UAB, major employers, and popular suburbs tend to have the strongest rental demand, while C/D class markets offer solid affordable housing and Section 8 opportunities.