I'm not going to hold a tenant hostage or make them pay rent if they finished their work contract early and need to leave town.

To be honest, any Contractor that asks for larger amounts of money is showing that they do not have any reserves and/or they are 'robbing Peter to pay Paul'.After the initial draw, I would advise paying as the project proceeds - after demo is completely done (and you know that for sure if you are out-of-town), then pay for demo....only.

My office is North of the city in Old Town.

Not really a town people "visit" much, yet.

There are all rules you need to follow and many towns are limiting the ability to do this now.  

A lot of Cali folks focus on the Midwest but don't know the states, towns, or cities, and also don't know anyone so they are flying blind there.

I don't know your market at all, but it's common for neighborhoods next to the hospital to not always feel safe to out of town nurses--- so just know proximity isn't always the main point.

It's in small town so there won't be huge appreciation we are planning to have tour next week.

Then if you did, you're often dealing with small town/county sheriff. 

How do you usually work with out-of-town buyers, and what should I know about investing remotely in your area?"