Just not enough inventory to support the demand in CA. 

Brandon Turner's Rental Property Investing book is an excellent primer to understanding the happy path for purchasing a property - however in this market it really comes down to having bulletproof assumptions on rents/taxes/R&M/etc. as with rates as high as they are/inventory as low as it is, there is less cushion in your returns if you analyze properties with bad assumptions.

I remember a buddy who once represented a client in the Santa Cruz Mountains.. this client turned an old barn into a shared art studio and invited local artists to rent the space, which ended up boosting inccome in ways they never imagined.The Redwood market can be tricky because of environmental restrictions, zoning quirks, and limited inventory.

Luxury rentals, purchases and short term accommodations will be in high demand from Santa Barbara to San Diego and a drastic uptick in inventory for sale can be anticipated in the areas most effected by the fires. 

we had a few left in our inventory and they each were sold to a house hacker.. great investment for a house hacker. 

The reality is that with the super low inventory we have sellers don't have a reason to give you a 50% discount, so your numbers get squeezed and you will end up leaving cash in the deal.

Keep in mind that this is also a very tough time to be entering the market as an agent because the inventory is so low.  

I have a list of them that I can share with you.Chicago, without a doubt, has some downsides, but there are also a lot of positives, like the inventory of older multi-family properties and price points at all levels.Investing out-state can be challenging because of the distance and the need for boots on the ground that you can trust 100%.

I've always found inventory rates (and how they've moved over time ie previous 1-2 years) to be the starting point for where a market's health is at.

I will look for your podcast.That's a great market with a high ceiling, but how's the inventory for finding homes to flip?