Ask a title co @Kasie Smith!  

Investor friendly title company doesn't mean stupid title company.

In general states with income tax (CA) should avoid doing RE investing in states with high property tax even though I know of some San Diego RE investors that appear to have done very good investing in Texas (@Cody L.).Your cash flow on the Texas properties do not appear to have cap expense or vacancy factored in (and possibly not insurance or maintenance). 

@Brandon Turner has a great video in the "How To" section of the videos titled "How To Get Started in Real Estate Investing for the Struggling Newbie" where he talks about learning how to surf (while he was on his month-long vacation in Hawaii).  

Hello all, As the title suggests, I am new to the real estate investment game.

Have there been any insurance claims on the property?

My claim seems equivalent to the  process you would use for the lien release of a private lender first or second mortgage.Who do I work with in the transaction to allow the sale to go through without a cloud on title, but also get paid?

Usually you will lose around 7% in sale with commissions, title fees, etc. (~15k) Additionally, sounds like you are living in it.

The flat fee should be his insurance against you "wasting" his time, and if anything it should be refunded at closing, not charged.

The monthly cost breakdown is as follows:Mortgage - $1,200Taxes - $700Flood insurance - $170Home Insurance - $150Reserves - $500I went into this saying I wanted to pay no more than I currently am paying in rent ($900) to live in this place.