It is premature and speculative and is not helping the conversation.

Pure speculation on my part

It could be only 1-2%, for those that are relatively new construction and in the areas where you would expect the most appreciation, up to 8%+, on older product in more speculative areas (and just for clarity, I'm talking about an annual figure, not the holding period CoC that some of the online calculators are producing...

I know I can change my strategy and stay in So Cal for the appreciation, but then I feel like there is more uncertainty tied to the speculation game then there is w/ finding a decent prop manager...

But this is just my speculation. 

You guys are so doom and gloom, come on man, the fed (that caused all this btw) is going to save EVERYONE, Banks, credit unions, trust and mortgage companies, investment banks, underwriters, brokerage firms, hard money lenders, stock speculators, the airline, auto, restaurant,hotel, bar, retail, casino, and travel industries,money market funds, the repo market, the global fx market, the stock market (direct purchases soon), the bond market, the derivatives market (oop's sorry ronin capital), consumer spending (helicopter money only 3 weeks away), your local bowling league and oh yea, air bnb.Don't worry the largest financial event of our lifetimes, BY FAR, will be over in a jiff and you will be rested and ready to get back to work!

It's similar to saying that all CA investors are speculators.  

There are pockets of disruption (seems to be large cities right now) which are making REI more speculative or risky imo but other than that this post is a great confirmation of a strong REI market for at least rentals in the US right now. 

What I hear people saying is that it is not prudent for inexperienced, under-capitalized newbie investors to shrug off what opportunities are available locally and concluding, using often faulty logic, that their market is "too expensive" and throwing their hard earned dollars into highly speculative ventures - whose risks they are too inexperienced to properly assess - promoted by promises of the "clear, blue sky."       

I think I will focus more on cash flow and later focus on the speculation approach as you mentioned.