I also have monthly fees for a CRM, our e-key system, and fees to be a part of my brokerage.

You're going to need to find somewhere that offers cash flow and good market fundamentals.

I live in MA and I am in the process of selling a rental property in CA and trying to fill out form 593-E to avoid paying the mandatory franchise tax since we did not make a profit on the sale. 

By "ease" is meant the idea that it's got a whole different set of mechanics compared to analyzing P/E ratios in stocks, and some folks just don't know much about it,  but more fundementally, the physical repairs and the interpersonal rigors of being a landlord.

I told my bank that I didn't want my deals to be driven by the geography but the fundamentals of the deal. 

You made several mis-steps here that put you in this situation.An e-mail is not a contract.

I feel very good about this and I want to make an offer, but I've never done that before, so I have some questions.1) Do I literally just e-mail the listing agent and say "I want to make an offer"?

Marketing 101 is focus as much as possible on a target niche & pain point.2nd of all, have you read The E-Myth?

For $39.80 you can subscribe to https://www.foreclosure.com/ I did for a while and they have an alert system that will send notifications to your e-mail and a free period so you can try them out before committing or making the first payment.

In your case you're going to need your schedule E to figure out you DTI.