I hope I did not confuse you more but the bottom line is that a good part of the answer, as it is with most cases, is based on the facts and circumstances.

Best to talk to an attorney to help your specific circumstances in California.

@Brian Garlington Dallas has a booming economy with great job and population growth but because of some of the highest property taxes and insurance rates in the nation, the returns are very low in comparison to Midwest markets like Indianapolis and Kansas City. 13-14% return are not realistic however when you take in to account vacancies and maintenance which a lot of people neglect to include.

There are just too many advantages to borrowing your money locally than taking a chance on out-of-town strangers that will have no idea of the prevailing terms in you area, knowing you personally, or knowing the homes or circumstances in your community.You'll want to develop a stable of local lenders you can approach depending upon how your properties meet their requirements.

My favorite thing about rehabbing is seeing past all the ugly in a neglected home and turning it into a gem. 

My understanding is that you wouldn't want the items on the application to be optional, because too many tenants would avoid divulging negative details about their circumstances.   

Last week we had some pretty awful circumstances that resulted in a do-over the next night. 

Life can happen and completely change your circumstances, making you not as strong of a borrower as before. 

He neglected to inform me that the reason the tenant move s out was because a tree fell and collapsed the back half of the house in.  

So my main question is : is it still possible to dive into real Estate investing under my circumstances?