Of course, he was not on the lease, nor did we know of him until this incident.The rival bad guy drug dealers came after him that night and he apparently pulled out his mondo gun and shot a warning shot... diagonally through the wall, but at a 50 degree angle upwards into the neighboring apartment.

We get bitter cold winters here and the investors I know who use them love having them in the building.  

I call myself, "Guest Services Representative" - I make coffee, put out treats and snacks when we have them, I clean up, I make sure the restrooms are stocked with paper goods, I help out with technical issues when I can, ...Yes - I will profess the truth to the bitter end.

Or some may litigate to the bitter end and the trustee will not bother doing so with every party.But like I said, so far some landlords got paid in full and others got stiffed.

I can understand why you may be bitter.

Most out of state investors are not going to buy higher end properties for rentals as they would rival what they can buy at home. 

No glitz and glamor in land lording, so in that vein Paris may be a bit too glamorous.My thoughts are that the "so called" developed countries will continue to take a knock whilst the emerging markets will rise especially China.On a politically based slant, I take the view that Obama and the USA may have more than its own fair share of political issues that could rival most African countries given whats going on with regards to the economy.But at the end of the day its all about perspective and sentiment.

Interestingly, owners of short term rentals in the area who have been locals for a long time are bitter about outside investors coming in and operating their own short term rentals remotely.  

You missed the boat and consequently your anger towards CA is palpable....it sounds like bitter lemons to me.As for your "answer", of course using high leverage is risky, but it's risky everywhere.

And personally stay away from any transactions involving your 401k.But at the same time use your personal savings and resources to invest as well, flip, rehab, etc.I understand it can be tempting to pull the funds together and do a bitter and better deal but in my opinion the risk is not worth it.