@Corbin HiblerYou can check with the city to see if they have programs where it gets rolled into the tax bill.

I am just an average Joe trying to sell our house to investors (ski resort town three hours east of SF if anyone is interested) - I just wanted to check in and see: Is it common for an investor to insist on entering into a contract before they inspect (where they have 2 weeks to inspect and cancel if they don’t like what they see & if they do they will close within one month)?

I would add Flower Mounds to consider if you are looking to be close to the airport too.However, investor friendly areas are Fort Worth which is growing a lot.All depends on your needs.

Personally I’ve stuck with SFH to avoid tenant on tenant conflict but thsi will let you find out if “the juice is worth the squeeze: with very little risk. 1) I assume you’re getting a least a few percent off for not involving a realtor.2) I assume you feel confident with the value (maybe ask a local banker what they would lend you on the property and even lay for an appraisal.)3) this is all assuming that this is a small investment to you as I’ve described above, not most of your savings and all of your operating cushion. 

If you're paying anyway..might as well get a G Wagon, or in this case a STR out of it. lol Check in with me if you'd like to explore OR, I work with a lot of absentee investors from your region.

Check in with @Joseph Chiofalo for specifics.

You'll like also need reserves of at least 6-12 months worth of PITI (principal, interest, taxes and insurance.) 5+ units can require more down, but 25%-35% is common.

Turn off your GPS and just drive around checking out areas.

The cheap properties out of state probably won't be worth much more than you pay for them today in 10 years.

Even if you think it is worth another $xxx -- if no one rents units in that neighborhood for that additional price, it is going to take you much longer to fill your vacancy so it could mean another 3 months empty with no income.