Lucky for us, this house was strictly in my wives name because 2 years ago I was a 1099 employee, so she had more solid proof of income.  

What is my level of responsibility.

Another option is going the turnkey route, where although you will be a long-distance landlord your level of involvement will still be minimal, as the turnkey company and the property manager handle most of the daily hassles. 

Many agents will balk at this but in CO it is very easy to do...just takes buyer and seller to sign a form that they acknowledge 1 agent is representing both sides.

As a first time investor or even a smaller investor its hard to find a level playing field in the Bay Area.

We live in Colorado so we're in the middle of winter right now.

There is a full-time staff of five (excluding owner), and the average employee tenure is around 10 years.

So are you managing it from Colorado?

I'd be prepared to spend about 10% of my profit on marketing, some of that would go to materials/mailer costs, and some would go to paying an employee to do the work.Do you have a recommendation or rule of thumb that has worked for you?

Colorado has a number of government run cabins (which get booked many months in advance) and I have stayed at a few private ones as well.