CRA (Community Re-development Agency) grants are possible for this specific area.

They can provide insights into tax implications, specific filing requirements, and potential deductions.General advice?

An inspector does not specialize in every area, and will often recommend a contractor inspection for specific areas. 

You can save 300 or so a month for reserves and still cashflow 200+ a month.If you realize the management/process is too complicated or a pain, or no one wants to rent your specific home, you can always pivot and sell the home then. 

When deciding between investing out of state vs home hacking in Oakland, keep the following in mind.Oakland House Hacking:Proximity: Living in Oakland while house hacking enables you to maintain a close proximity to San Francisco, which might prove advantageous for property management and maintaining connections with the local market.Possibility of Appreciation: Property values in the Bay Area have increased historically, which is good for accumulating equity over time.Local market dynamics, tenant preferences, and potential obstacles might be simpler to comprehend when one is in a familiar location.Demand for Rentals: Oakland has a robust rental market, and you can discover good demand for rental units if you pick the appropriate property and location.Creating Local Connections: If you live in the Bay Area, house hacking can assist you in making local contacts with property managers, real estate agents, and other investors.Investing Out of State:Investing outside of your state may be more affordable and enable you to use the same funds to buy more than one property.A few out-of-state markets can have more favorable cash flow prospects in contrast to the pricey Bay Area market.Geographic diversity, which can help reduce risks related to market-specific variations, is made possible by investing in a variety of markets.Hiring a local property management business, which offers a more hands-off approach to property management, is often necessary for out-of-state investments.Remember, both options have their advantages and challenges.

Those plans are specifically for your site, but I guess the worst that can happen is they copy your ideas for the floorplans, elevations, etc, but I think most GC's are too busy for all that.

I struggle with very non-specific rules about what the REIT can invest in. 

I invested in the Bay Area for 30 years-specifically San Mateo and Los Gatos.

Also, if we want to be specific, are we talking about areas such as Leander? 

The answer seems very broad vs specific to your circumstances.