When asking a couple of title agents for a referral for a real estate attorney to assist with "Subject to" closings they both stated these deals can not be done if the existing loan is FHA or VA or any other gov loan.

I believe the value is higher than it was when we bought because of the rent increases and improvements we have made, but value can be subjective depending on the metric you are using (or more specifically what metric potential buyers would use), whether or not that be using comparable sales, cap rates, cash on cash return, the 1% rule, etc... 

@Maurice Lucas Jr it is somewhat subjective.

Single family homes in our market have above average annual appreciation and we live in a hot rental market so our strategy is to buy, hold and rent to maximize profits.

If you have a hot market and multiple qualified applicants, there is no reason to consider paying an agent.

I’m going to keep searching for more information on the subject and I’ll let you guys know how my experience goes a few months from now once I get home.

Remember, land usually sells much slower than houses, unless it's in a really hot location, so you'll have to lower your asking price quite a bit from retail in order to sell it quick.  

You would only be subject to depreciation recapture based on the depreciation taken during the period it was used as a rental.Have you looked into doing a cash-out refinance before turning it into a rental?

@Brandon Hall correct me if I'm wrong, but for the 2018 and beyond tax years, the LLC now does make a difference, as it could be subject to additional pass through taxation reduction- as well as needing to make a choice on how the deduct mortgage interest.

Even if you create a non-CA LLC, if you are managing the business from California, you will be deemed to be "doing business" in California and therefore subject to CA taxes.