I understand it hurts to provide bad tenants money, however it will resolve the problem quicker and remove this frustration from your life, which I'm sure is worth a couple thousand dollars. 

I can provide you with insights and advice on how to get started in real estate investing.

In addition to many insurance providers pulling out of the state of Florida, we heard of big insurance issues in coastal cities in South Carolina, Georgia, etc.

Anybody have experience using Brian Page’s BnB Formula program and can provide their review of it?

Development can absolutely provide great returns.

These are more complex legal structures that can provide even more protection than a traditional LLC alone.

In fact, your insurance provider can give you guidance on all these limits.$500 seems low for a pet.

Better to lose nearly $10k in rent (~50% of 90 day rent value) than get a risky tenant.Especially if you self manage, make sure you understand the protections provided mid term renters in CA.Good luck

Some idea's- wholesaling, structuring a seller/creative finance deal, or finding a deal then finding a partner with funding then offer to provide the management and grunt labor for a small slice of equity (10% of a deal is better than 100% of no deal). 

There are a ton of us who can provide all sorts of answers to questions you will have.:)