I am from the Central Valley area of California (Stockton, Modesto, Merced, etc) and getting my feet wet in real estate.

.#2 Partner with Someone that Has Construction ExperienceTo get your feet wet, you could partner with another house flipper, contractor or construction professional that could help with Estimating Costs.

Therefore, as long as I can find a deal that cash flows in the short term, I figure that getting my feet wet is better done sooner rather than later.

It allows me to get my feet wet in investing, learn, make mistakes with less money on the line.

Maybe you could buy them a shop wet vac and they would agree to use it?

Ok so I'm just getting my feet wet in investing...

we are close to a couple from florida self managing in winter park.most of these towns are year round places now outside the months of say late april/may (wet season) and october / early nov. 

Then I would call a local "wet basement specialist" and have them take a look, could be a variety of different things if its related to the rains, then should be able to point you in the right direction and give you a couple options.  

Duplex sounds interesting and cash flowable, but I am also thinking of turnkey (looked at rent to retirement) to get my feet wet and not get too buried in my first door. 

It means you should spread your money out into different things, like different types of real estate, so if one doesn't do well, the others can help keep your money safe.It's like having more than one plan in a game so you can still win, even if one plan doesn't work out.So, remember, when it comes to money and investments, it's smart not to put everything in one place.Lesson: It's essential not to put all your money into a single type of investment.Diversify, which means spreading your money into different types of real estate.This way, if one doesn't do well, the others can help balance things out.Lesson 2: Don't Ignore Warning SignsWhen you're walking down the street and you see a "Wet Floor" sign, it's there for a reason – to warn you about a slippery surface.Just like that, in the world of real estate, there are warning signs too, and you shouldn't ignore them.Imagine you're looking to buy a house, and you notice that the neighborhood is getting quieter, or the houses around it are starting to look run-down.These are warning signs that something might not be quite right.