The seller also loved that we were coming to a tight knit community where people lye roots, and as fellow REIs weren't in fear of CA sticker prices.

Also, I encountered the distinction between SFRs and apartments/condos and I am glad you mentioned that they impact the markets differently. 

As far as PM, I intend to stay with the same company that's been managing it for the last 12 years, unless we encounter some issues with them.

Ask for a copy of his license, 2. ask for his acord insurance copy and name you as insured, 3. sign a contract with the company name, for newbies, only sign contract when the signing party is the actual name whrn you pull their license info (usually from your contractors board website) 4. tap your shoulder for a good job.If you hire a GC, it is their job to pull sub permits, that's why it is called "General Contractor".I often encounter those good workers nowadays that want to be on my network, some tile guy asked me if I could hire him per contract, i asked if he was license, same reply as yours "i work with a guy who has a license", i told him give to give me the above, he then said can he work for me per hour. lol.

@Jimmy Wilson  You could use either VA or Conventional however if you wanted to cash out (obtain a refinance higher than the current amount owed in an attempt to get cash back) you will encounter title seasoning requirements with Conventional financing which is a min of 6 months to cash out while with VA (if you're a veteran with entitlement available) you can cash out to the maximum allowed by VA guidelines which is 100% of market value and VA has no title seasoning requirements similar to conventional financing.

We (my other business) send 5-8 Canadian originated wire transfers to various international destinations each month and 80% of our encountered "difficulties" are with U.S.A. destined wires.It's a bit reassuring to hear it's also cumbersome internally ....

Report has been gained, knowledge traded, you know what they do and how and they know what you can do.I'm still waiting for you to fix my garden and suggest a better wardrobe for occasions I may encounter.

Every bank we've encountered is going to want 15-25% down on the sale price, regardless of the appraisal.

That said, I always encounter people who always wanted to get into real estate investing but did not know how nor did they have the time, patience, resources, and self-discipline to do research on their own.

I was wondering if anyone else here has gone down the same path and if there are any issues you have encountered or any suggestions you would like to share on what to watch out for, any conflicts, advice.