I'm residing in Canada but am a dual citizen and ready to pull a trigger on a rental property in Dallas, TX as I have family there who can monitor things when I'm gone.

That residency requirement would run concurrent with the two year period before you can once again take advantage of the sec 121 exchange. 

@Josh The 500k sfh is for my future primary residence.

Not sure but as a college student I’d think it’d be tough to get into a property with only 10k, even as a primary residence. 

Shawn Evans 1031 can't be used for a personal residence, so putting into a 203k owner occupancy SFH is out.

It looks like only 1/3 of Sacramento county's residents live within the city limits and Yolo, Placer, and El Dorado are all part of the broader set of options for living and investing in the area.I'd like to think it doesn't have much chance of success - some of the groups getting together to oppose it are quite powerful.

Unless the neighborhood where your property is located has experienced a dramatic shift toward higher income residents, there is no cosmetic upgrade that will give you a return on investment.

Also, when you ran the numbers did you consider all the tax deductions if it's going to be your primary residence?

If it isn’t I’d look at renting or buying a primary residence first, then investing.

I've used it for legal questions in the past and just recently used it substantially with the purchase of my new home (primary residence).