Then I checked my 2018 tax return, I know the reason: the first several properties that I bought were all in hard-hit area, some prices are doubles, some are even triple, but their MARKET cap rate decrease from the time that I bought them, which was more than 8, to just 3.5 right now.

At this moment, I am actually leaning towards stop funding my 401K altogether (or maybe decrease my contributions).

Since then they've only had about $2500 worth of annual expenses, a number that actually decreased significantly once we found the right property manager.

It decreases problems in the future by vetting the person you are going into business with and giving money to before you go down the road.

I'd be surprised if it gets that cold down in Oakland, but you are likely dealing with higher indoor (and outdoor) humidity and the face of your wall assembly may drop below the dewpoint.You need to find the cause of the humidity: broken dryer vent line; dishwasher; long, steamy showers w/o the bathroom fan running; water leak; too many people living in the unit; in-adequate ventilation (particularly if the envelope is tight); a grow-op in the basement, etc.  

We choose not to raise rent immediately upon taking possession, but sometimes we raise the security deposit to a better amount at that point if it is inadequate.

If I was doing two bathrooms and kitchen price would decrease because id put one day in all the demo and hardi, another day or two on tile etc.Different areas warrant different pricing.

I'm not certain why this happens, if it brings you any comfort know that this happens to agents too, sadly, client satisfaction and salesmanship seem to decrease as time goes by, but luckily there are resources like BP, hopefully you can find a more helpful agent here

Sounds like a very bad relationship.I would focus on the entry to fix without permission and. decreased use of property when trying to get the deposit back.

I’ve reached out on this site in the past, and I recently asked a successful wholesaler if he would consider mentoring me, and he responded that he feels "inadequate" to mentor.It’s very frustrating knowing that I have what it takes to become successful (not just monetarily) in real estate investing, and yet not being able to get the training that I need from someone vested in my success.