You need cooling for 8-9 months of the year I bet. 

You do have to keep your eye on the long term, while mitigating risk and hedging your bets in the short term ... and that takes skill, capital, and patience.

you don't want to be tied into those big payments when something goes south, and you can bet it will. 

Your best bet, may be like Bob suggests, is to sell a partial for now until you get further seasoning.

This information will never show up in a report, but could move the needle on the final number the appraiser comes to.Your best bet is to go through the report with a fine tooth comb and figure out whether or not the appraiser came to a legitimate conclusion based on the information available.  

I know you didn't plan on this problem and I bet there are a lot of other absentee owners in similar situations.

I bet you will get some good advice from others on how to make your postcard stand out (as a writer, I think a large-type, strong Call to Action on the front goes a long way).

Bet you were using the BCC feature (you should have been), but regardless, it's the multiple recipients that is your problem - - send then 1by1 AND randomly wait before sending the next.

Your best bet is to get your real estate license, in the future when this scenario comes up you can just list the house for them and collect a fee. 

Getting a good credit family member is your next best bet