Taxes appear low enough at about 45/mo on this property to not lose too much money.

If anyone knows a lender that would be able to loan us enough to pay off our immediate needs which would be around $17000 with 1 low monthly payment for 12 months both my husband and I would be very appreciative.  

As investors we're always trying to get properties for as low as possible.  

@Phil Bach is absolutely correct when he says REOs are going above & beyond MLS retail prices.

Interest rates are historically low.

I deal in SFH with rents 2-2.5x the "low" end rents for my area.  

I'm independent, no debt, no student loans, very low tuition (with financial aid grants), rent of $500 per month, credit score above 750 and a small chunk of change saved up in the amount of $15,000. 

House hacking is also an awesome strategy in CA because you get to lock in low property tax rates and it is relatively easy to cash out the equity you build in a primary residence and use it to leverage your next property.  

Absolutely possible!

Of course you could look at lease rates on Loopnet and Commercial Search, but I like the low tech approach of going to an area and walking into a business of a similar property and just asking them to be kind enough and help you with some market research and tell you how much they pay in rent.