The realtors did not give a crap who they rented too and so the only thing working in my favor is both were on month to minth agreements.

Once you buy right (toughest part - the acquisition) than you work on making things work in your favor IE. manage very carefully, have a network of people to turn to who will not rip you off assuming you won't be doing the management yourself.IF you can fully manage and do repairs yourself than that is even better as you won't need to give up this portion of expenses which will in turn boost your return so you are a step ahead.

You might also try a more favorable local portfolio lender as an alternative to traditional banks.  

The dscr lender is doing me a huge favor by getting it done.

It might take a while, but depending on what your goals are, you could wait to save that down payment/build credit... wait for the market to be favorable... and practice looking at deals until you find one that works in your own area.I hope this helps

The home is going to be pretty much new from top to bottom so we think the product that we have to offer will be favorable.  

Doesn't quite work out to be a wash because CA usually has higher tax rates so if you earned $2,000 in SC you probably paid a much lower rate... say $50 in taxes but in CA the tax on $2,000 is probably more like $180, but you would only get a credit for $50 so CA still essentially taxes that $2,000 in some fashion. 

Your tenant is a con man, and the fake check deposited at the last moment clearly shows that these types of people do not play by the same rules as the rest of us.You're not obligated to do anyone any favors, but if you decide to help someone, you must set boundaries and I think Michael S summed it up perfectly.

Below market purchase with an ARV that was favorable to surrounding inventory.

These same neighbors used to complain about my wife and I in the same fashion constantly.