OR, maybe it's not far fetched to think that what's happened in the Bay Area in terms of politics/supply/demand/rent control is the natural progression of things.

Sometimes my brain gets all jumbled when I listen to the podcast and hear how Brandon says to ask “How can I make it happen” and hear some of the stories about partnering up and things of that nature.

So the concept is, whatever peril befalls the guest - illness, car troubles, death, job loss, natural disaster - we may, at our own discretion, assign the damages from that peril to you, the homeowner. 

We painted, fixed ceiling cracks, replaced the floor with laminate and new carpet, replaced ceiling fans and light fixtures, bath vanity and toilet.

They would be better off putting their money in a pot and lighting it on fire.If you are buying quick and sight-unseen to beat the rush, you are buying for the wrong reasons.

@Ryan Howard welcome...doing some more research on your desired path should shed some light on the environment you're working in...I would caution noting that you do not have capital, but want to wholesale to raise capital...you're essentially admitting you are trying to broker real estate without a license...you will hear lots of opinions on this, but the bottom line is if you have no intent to close on a contract you enter into, you're engaging in unlicensed activity and subject to $1,000/day fines.I'm not saying don't wholesale...I am saying do your homework so you don't end up in a tight situation.Taking time to explore every option in RE investing is not a good approach...I can save you years of heartache and you'll be wealthy much faster by sticking to fundamentals...long-term buy and hold real estate is the only path you need to go down. 

So ya, STRs are playing a natural part in inflating prices but its a small portion of the price increases. 

I think we both overlooked the masterpiece of the nautical light fixture....

Nature has provided them all over the place here some I wish we could remove. 

@Julio Gonzalez - Could this be as simple as switching from a fuel oil hvac system to a natural gas one?