I preference is to buy out of state because it is virtually impossible to buy anything  around here in Orange County CA that will not be cash flow deep negative without putting down a boatload of money. 

Do you have any resources in Orange County that are familiar with various cities down there.Thanks for all the info

Orange in a similar unit. 

Im in the Atlanta and Cleveland markets from Texas and have enjoyed the fruits of out of state real estate with 6.08% yields on a couple of properties after 2 years and 14.07% YTD. 

Comparing using an IRA to invest in real estate to investing in real estate with personal funds, however, is an apples and oranges kind of comparison for the most part - the situations are just so different.The best way to evaluate a self-directed IRA is as compared to other things you might do with the IRA account. 

Most of the high-volume wholesalers are getting a premium for their deals and sometimes they are buying them and "wholetailing" them.The market will change with the housing bubble and wholesalers will be less valuable as bank own properties "REO's" will be the low hanging fruit, per the investor buyer perspective (just like what happened in 2008).

Can someone recommend a CPA in the Orange County, CA area?  

It can be a fruitful but frustrating market to work in.I don't send mailers as it takes too long to get to the seller and they will probably have relisted by the time they get the mailer.

and end up wearing orange jumpers for a 3 to 5 years and they deserve it.

Apparently Osceola, Sumter, Pasco, and orange are just too much even though they border us.