We have been going all in on our remodels because the apartments are in such bad shape.

When that happens to me, I feel like I dodged a bullet--better a vacant unit than a unit with a bad tenant in it. 

Keep in mind that a bad GC can cause you all kinds of headaches from disappearing materials to subs putting liens on your property from not being paid/being underpaid.

An index  + a spread would be a better comparison and cash doesn't come off quite so badly in many scenarios.But thats neither here nor there, just wanted to get some nuance of my chest and in there for @Brent Davis .

I know mortgage forgiveness would be bad for this.

The photos aren't bad, but they don't match the quality I'm looking for.I also prefer to own the photos.

If I thought that way seven months ago, how does that influence the next seven months.Many forum posts are many months old, and only a few gets updated, but most are just forgotten unless there is an update on a old post. 

Oakland has quite a heft city transfer tax for example compared to other states in CA) you really just need to know how those changes may or may not influence your investment.

It's in bad shape.  

Eviction is expensive, and if she's doing a bad job with the paint, maybe her security deposit will cover most of the cost of repainting the house if you let her complete the lease?