The more systems you have in play, the quicker you can assess and make decisions.

Inspector/contractor/property manager will be the team of experts you will rely on to make an informed final buying decision here. 10) RENOVATE - you must use an airtight process to manage your contractor to protect yourself and arrive at the desired outcome, on time, within budget.

The same principle will apply anywhere, but with less appreciation in, say, the Midwest, you'll be losing out on some of the sweet CA equity growth.I gotta say, choosing where to live is more than just an investment decision.

Would it be a smarter decision to intern for an agency for a few months before working as an agent for a firm?

Edit:  My father has specifically stated that his age does not factor into their real estate investment decisions (the idea is that I would do all the work anyway). 

You want someone that can help you strategize and who is responsive when you want to know the tax consequences of the decisions you are making throughout the year.Good luck and let me know if you have any questions.

I don’t mind the rental property and ultimately want to get into that so it’s just the decision of which one to start with.

That would include the decision to go ahead and replace windows and sliders in 4 of the units which I would want to show in the capital expenditures for the year.

Next to getting the right deal, I believe that the most important decision is getting the right tenant.

Subsequently, my husband and I decided that investing may be something that we would start to investigate and had told him so, but also that we are due diligence people and don't just jump out and make decisions with tens of thousands of dollars on the line. 3 days later we got that text.