Finally heard back from my realtor last night that the sellers received a competing offer over the weekend.

excellent area.. rent control is a downside

The ALAREIA group is excellent.

I have been communicating to them via text messages so far, and also receiving payments with extra charge for being late. 

@Peter SikI'll say this and leave it at that- it was one of the best advice I received from a experienced landlord- "NO tenant is better than a BAD tenant" Pick your tenants wisely, it could make or break your investment property.

If the interest you're paying your father or someone else, combined with the interest on the mortgage, combined with the principal paydown, the rent received, the expenses... if everything results in cash flow that meets your goals, then it will all come down to mustering the faith to take that next step.I would highly recommend connecting with someone locally who has house hacked... pick their brain, learn how they made it work, etc. 

An excellent way to invest is buying and selling undeveloped land.

Passive marketing (receiving calls) is going to cost you money, active marketing (calling your database and cold calling) will cost you energy.

An excellent way to learn about real estate is buying and selling undeveloped land.

You can receive better returns if you are willing to look outside of King and Snohomish Counties and outside of Washington.