Trully appreciate this because it makes sense and helps get these emotions under control lol!

I’ll still call out extremely poor taste in decorating when I see it though, I can’t control it.  

I know, a HUGE mistake but I am over it and moving forward while focusing on what I can control. 

Yes I have looked into the state-wide rent control legislation.

And there's no federal mechanism pressuring states to do something specific, like how if a state's drinking age is below 21 then that state will lose federal highway dollars (fun fact: there is ALSO no federal minimum drinking age applicable outside of federally controlled land, just some highway money that forced all the states to "voluntarily" set it at 21 on an individual basis, I believe Texas was the last holdout, possibly due to oil money). 

He will now have to wait until our transaction is complete and pay me for access, but now the church is knocking my door to purchase the property and control who their neighbors are.

If you were thinking of something with STR, and you aren't completely familiar with the business model, it may be worth it to purchase something that doesn't have an HOA (SFH, MFH) so that you have more direct control over the asset. 

I recall at 23-24, getting off the train after my 1 hour and 40 minute commute had ended and watching middle aged adults sprinting to their cars to get home and beat the 2 minutes of traffic in the parking lot after commuting nearly 2 hours.

Never mind that Hayward has rent control, and now the whole state has rent control, and you'll never get there. 

You don't see much rent control in red states