Now with the guarantee of return on a 401K is pretty good but I would see how it is written and how it is affected by company ownership could change.  

I have an idea that might be worth floating: 1031ing out of your cash-flow-negative property into a fractional ownership investment like a syndicated TIC or DST that can accommodate a quick close on your own timeframe.

I think Elk Grove is a great area, it is harder to find fixers out there partially due to the limited age of homes and pride in ownership by majority of owners.  

I had learned enough from my multi-ownership research to be aware of various syndication and OPM models.  

We have 3 people that are willing to lend a portion.My understanding is that the cleanest way to do this is create an LLC where each person's ownership percentage is based on the percentage of the whole investment they put in.

Example: 30/70 split between Jim Brown and his IRAHow the property purchase is recorded: Jim Brown, an undivided 30% interest and IRA Services Trust Company CFBO Jim Brown , an undivided 70% interest.Compliance NotesThe percentage of ownership is determined by how much funds each party invests at time of real estate purchase.All expenses and income are shared based on the ownership percentages.No debt financing can be incorporate under a tenancy in common (TIC) transaction; otherwise, the transaction will be deemed a prohibited transaction. 

[Actually it is all about control, as you may know, and not really ownership.

Remember that under EPA regulations, any person or organization that has EVER had any ownership or possession of the property may be held totally responsible for any clean-up costs. 

Not only is ownership important so you know who you need to be dealing with, but you want to know what other mortgages or liens and even judgments against the seller are. 

As an engineer, you know that your learning needs a good foundation, you need to learn the basics of real estate, what ownership rights are, different types of deeds, title requirements, types of contracts and financing requirements.