Even the townhouse I live in here in California was a short sale... and I moved in about 3 days after close. 

IMO, not worth dealing with used appliances - all savings will go out the window with the first repair call. unless of course your lease agreements explicitly require tenant to maintain appliances (not typical in CA but common in mid-West)Personally, I always buy new from HD and always get 5 year pro warranty - covers all repairs and in a few cases ended up with new units when they could not fix old ones.

AmandaI would say it depends to what you are used to; if you are from CA or NYC you may find the Milwaukee spectaculary easy to work.

Fast forward to today, I've built up my cash reserves and moved to a more affordable part of Southern California (at least I think) where I'm honing on catching that first one. 

I am not sure what your contracts look like in Utah but in CA those are embedded in every CA Assoc of Realtor contract. 

I've been investing in California and Nevada for years, but prices have gone up way too much for me to be comfortable with it. 

I’ve read a lot and just wanted to know how anyone got started in the Los Angeles, CA or California in general for their first rental property?

Did anyone sign up for US Tax Lien Association 3 day workshop 5/16-5/18 in Burlingame Ca?

IE loan your own money.. and that takes experience and state qualifications.I do like CA though I can lend HM there with my  CA brokers license..  

@Yan Kang cap rates in California are low, 4-5% in general range.