Had I used $43k for both properties above, you would make a little more on Watts and lost a little less on Costa Mesa, but the point would be the same.

People tend to remember the painful lessons better than the easy ones.I see a lot of good advice here, but then I see you saying, "Yes, but that's not what I WANT you to say."

The lesson learned has been invaluable, but I'd like to avoid taking a $5000 loss if I can. 

@Micah CopelandThanks for the response....I do/did, but I kind of blew them off since I had a buyer agreeing to asking price. (1st lesson learned).

A lot of reading, a good team, and a whole lot of extra money for all the bumps that you will encounter, they will be very costly, be ready for that, this might be the most expensive lesson that you will ever take.

I'd just look at the silver lining and chalk it up as a lesson learned a lot easier than it could have been.

Anyways, 2 months later I received orders to deploy to Afghanistan and had to pay a $588 payment on that truck, about $100 a month in insurance a month, and it sat in my garage for 9 months...That money spent on that truck could have been making me money while deployed or I could have saved it...Buddy I have learned my lesson...During my tour in Afghanistan I aggressively paid off my first rental home that rents for $850.

This comes from many lessons over my lifetime so far, CLEARLY define what peoples roles are and what happens with the money once its in the business PRIOR to making the money. 

I'm starting to get the belief it is better to invest more into location and focus less on the property itself.

If you have to drop your price 10% to get it sold... well, there goes the profit and you'll be paying an expensive lesson.