I'm considering purchasing a condo or a small SFH in the Oceanside/Carlsbad area as an investment property and renting it out on a short term rental site like AirBNB. 

No, DIY is not the same as a virtual site visit or a study done by engineers @Dana YobstAs @V.G Jason said, you could very likely cost yourself more in time and money.

The WORST result for you would be losing your EMD which is exactly what happens if you don’t go to court.

Almost always it is in the customers favor to exaggerate or make false accusations against a business they are trying to slander vs the business which has much more to lose.

Costing them thousands and making them lose out on homes.

Found this property through our local online foreclosure auction site.

There are some that are great for sure, but I have currently heard terrible stories about people putting money in the last 2-3 years and losing it all, capital calls and losing the whole deal due to bad bridge loans (some coming do very soon). 

If there's any equity there and they can't pay the mortgage they are going to eventually lose the house anyway. 

A good place to get an idea of what they look like is to go to one of the crowdfunding sites.

I love this site and all the professionals that give away free advice with no strings attached.