I too live in Marin, and feel it is a solid long term market for apprecaition, and utilizing the power of principle reduction.When it comes to refinancing, figure out what the loan costs will be, then divide that buy the monthly savings with the new loan in order to determine how long you have to maintain that loan to break even. 

Everything resolved as good as could be expected w/o court (albeit full renovation was needed.)

Some of these issues are resolvable, others seems to be impossible to solve completely requiring work arounds if you still decide to proceed with the property. 

No matter what you do I think you are going to have guests point out that something isn’t working which could lead to annoyance or requests for refunds or bad reviews.Plus, providing bottled water over the long term probably isn’t going to save you much money compared to paying a plumber to get the fridge connected. 

Plumbing company says its the only way to resolve the issue I have.

Learning is great and having guidance can expedite and often saves unnecessary heartache. 

this could very well be another option to save money in interest etc. 

While metrics like square footage or price per square foot matter, the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, and overall location are often more critical for attracting tenants.Engaging a property manager early on can save you from costly mistakes and help you invest in properties that perform well in the rental market.

Furthermore, if you are working on refinancing sixth and investment properties at once, I would put all my focus and energy on working with one lender or one broker who can get you the best terms for cheaper cost all your business to one place typically when I see folks do they save a bit on processing these and origination fees.

You can save and have a foundation to do your first fix and flip