Now I will plug my side of the mountains... lower costs, better weather, beautiful, good university, "nature" is much closer, several decent airports... and you still get to call Colorado home!

Naturally, if you were able to put in a lot of your own money in, you could "fake cash flow" but I would advise against it.

We chose the Springs for a lot of reasons...cost of living, natural beauty, outdoor recreation, taxes, air quality, proximity to CA and IN (our extended families are in those two states). 

After you have  been investing for awhile, people think you are "naturally" good at it but I think we all have learned expensive lessons.

The renovation (reworking of a master suite by enlarging the master bedroom and installing a luxury bathroom) should be finished in a month and I'm projecting it will increase the value of the home by about $50k. 

CLICK to Enlarge.

That's the nature of starting a business.

Home under contract as retail flip but considering wholesaling.  3/2 with incredible character, 2 car garage, beautiful natural light from oversized windows in kitchen and dining, and much more.ARV - $365,000+Rehab estimate - $50,000 

Some people literally change the subject to something else (and as the OP mentioned, it's not bragging - I'm not telling them about money coming in or anything of that nature - it's often something as simple as saying I filled a vacancy or made an improvement to a property).

My natural bias is always toward B/B+ SFR as tenants tend to stay longer and see them as homes, rather than pit stops.