Particularly in coastal regions? 

Try going to the commercial side of a regional bank in your area and see about a line of credit based on the house as collateral.  

Are there a lot more risks to buying in non-local regions? 

I am currently entertaining bids from some Regional and National providers, but need to eliminate the middle man where I can and would prefer to work directly with a great GC in the area as I will be buying more properties there very soon.

So, I suppose I'm asking if you think I should also look at other regional areas, GSP, CLT, maybe Raleigh/RTP, or Knoxville/Johnson City, or do you think it's better to continue saving, continue learning about my local Asheville market, and see what comes up?

I would suggest that you 1) ask a lot of questions here 2) go to any local/regional RE meetups you can find and meet others that might be willing to help you in any way and 3) never stop learning online/offline/in RE, and most importantly 4) DON'T GET ANALYSIS PARALYSIS - you are going to make mistakes regardless of how much you learn about RE investing, so get out there and start DOING once you have a decent foundation of knowledge.

With all that said, we are most grateful for positive thoughts, encouragement and advice on investing in a region that is still finding its way

(note I'm moving to the Newark OH region, and plan to start expanding my portfolio around there)

Our house has a great view of the Nehalem bay, Neahkahnie Mountain and the Pacific.

Mail letters, craigslist, local, regional and national brokers, loopnet, REIA meetings, apartment association meetings, etc.