Tough situation.Sounds like your mortgage forces your hand. 

I'm not completely foreign to the construction process as I grew up around a family that was involved in home building, but due to living in another state I can't really lean on them for the direct, hands-on guidance. 

The very first day that a tenant is late, a Notice of Default needs to be delivered to the tenant (you need a receipt of delivery; if you hand deliver it, place it in a sealed envelope with their name on it marked 'urgent/confidential' and take a photo of it placed on their door). 

. 🤔 After having the plumber come back a couple of times to try to remediate, we brought in a different plumber that provided 2 other possible remediation things we could try.

I need long-term renters as a back up.I saw a basement apartment for rent in LauriaVille in a gorgeous remodeled home that’s been listed for $1050  It’s been sitting there a couple months and that concerns me because that’s not a lot of money for quite a bit of space in a great house.It’s been sitting there a couple months and that concerns me because that’s not a lot of money.

I would lay eyes on anything you are considering purchasing first hand.

On the other hand if they are a sponsor that is experienced in stopping a skin in the game, that's a huge red flag for me.c) how open to scrutiny are they?

The best contractors don’t just throw their hands up when issues arise; they come up with solutions and keep the project moving forward.5.

Quick search "MLS Only Broker California" gives you a couple of options.

Went to a Tax Sale where the property burnt down a couple days before the sale, yet people bid on it not knowing the property was ashes.