I have ton of home improvement knowledge and I would love to eventually be a fulltime real estate investor.

Acting on that advice will improve most people's luck.

The city also made improvements to the drainage and that helped, if any changes like that have happened, you might negotiate it down further.

It appears your investment sold above the median price for Orange County, likely due to improved employment and tight inventory.

Research ways to improve your credit score2.

How are you planning those equity improvements?

Small town feel close to urban areas.The issues are very few jobs, not many commute to Vancouver/Portland, the water quality has issues, school and hospital quality is poor, HIGH poverty rates, and a general apathy about improving/changing the city.  

Here's what I've done to improve my title search skillsCreated a form which has entries that should be captured during each search.

Although many will tell you otherwise, there is always room for improvement to any product and no one has cornered the market on imagination.

Find a lender that makes sense to you and continue to look to improve on the money network.