Going through a traditional bank can be a tedious process and no guarantee that you'll even get approved for a loan.

Go for it...and get another CPA.If you have a traditional retirement account, this is a good time to consider a Roth conversion while your earned income is low...may be able to convert some or all of it (over time) tax free. 

I am just going to choose about 10 homes from the BidBaltimore.com website and compare those to the new list.

we've been asked the same question by a dozen or so good friends who live in/near SF about whether it's worth postponing the ownership dream, given where the bay area market is in 2018. personally, I think that right now is the time to hold off on entering the bay area market... unless you find a truly off-market, discounted opportunity through networking or a personal connections.sidenote: moving to the east bay (alameda, particularly) actually shortened my commute time into my day job in SF, compared to when i lived in SF. i'm sure you've heard this perspective before, but there's goodness to be found in the east bay, if you are dead set on buying in 2018/2019.from an investing perspective, there are still strong returns to be found outside of california. that's why we recommend to friends with capital that they consider looking into investment. that way they can start building wealth now and position themselves for buying that beautiful home when the time is financially right. sidenote: i recently posted on a similar topic on this thread. you can see if you scroll down and there are dozens of other helpful comments on this topic, on that thread: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/12/topics/587593-general-do-you-rent-or-own-the-home-you-currently-live-in?

Okay - so you should know that Utah is a pretty big state for LLC's, due to low costs and similar / comparable protections as other state's LLC's. 

You will be able to close  quickly compared to conventional financing and they will evaluate the deal more than you as an investor.

Any money I do use right away (a very small amount compared to buying a property), I get right back...with "friends". 

I would love some input from other investors that have invested in single family and small apartment buildings to get a feel how the two compare regarding cash flow after expenses?

My question seems dumb - should we risk to buy a 1.5-1.7M newer SF and to be bound to the mortgage forever and work our whole life to pay for it, or should we buy a SF around 1.3-1.4M which has much worse condition comparing with the above?

Why would I want to extend myself buying another 1031 exchange property when I can’t find something comparable, nor pay the hefty tax bill since we own the house for 14 years if we decide to cash out.