I sold lots and land.. 10% commish was minimum.. properties that were 1 hour drive by dirt road back into the national forest of Northern CA.. commish for those I charged anywhere from 15 to 30% ...

@Diane G. we do 1031's nationally.  

I bank with a large national bank and pay most RE bills via online banking.

And I think I've found the exception although I know many potential women who may meet your known criteria. lol.

You'll know all the answers to the National part, so you can focus on state specific info and you should definitely pass your GA exam.

Buying a 2-4 unit as an owner occupant will get you the best deal to start if you are planning on moving here, this will also allow you to establish a rental portfolio in US.But you can still get financing as foreign national(on a visa), just with lower LTV's.  

I would, at a minimum, interview with 1 or 2 national companies, and 1 or 2 local companies.  

Frank Nothaft, chief economist for CoreLogic, weighed in on pricing recently stating that “As of the end of 2016, the CoreLogic national index was 3.9 percent below the peak reached in April 2006,” and “We expect our national index to rise 4.7 percent during 2017, which would put homes prices at a new nominal peak before the end of this year.”

Article from HousingWire:The National Association of Realtors drew a line in the sand between homebuyers and investors, but one investor says he’s had enough.NAR made its stance on investors clear on several occasions: Investors are creating more competition for first-time homebuyers, possibly even keeping them from homeownership.Back in January, the initial public offering for Blackstone Group’s single-family rental operator, Invitation Homes, became one step closer to reality, as the company disclosed the terms of its initial public offering.What was unusual about this deal was the fact that it happened with the backing of mortgage giant Fannie Mae, as noted in the Wall Street Journal.NAR did not wait long to criticize the GSE, sending a letter to Mel Watt, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, according to an article by Lorraine Woellert for POLITICO.

On average women live longer, so typically Grandpa dies first.