Choosing market and realtor for my first investment

[Kunal Lakhwani]

I live in California, and as most know, the initial investment to entry in real estate investing is quite high.

My goal is to build a portfolio of buy and hold properties for passive income. Looking at starting with a turnkey with single or duplex and gradually transition into BRRRR with multi-family as I get comfortable.

I am looking at Texas and willing to put a 20-25% upto $35,000. I am not hooked onto Texas though since any place outside of CA is out-of-state investment for me with similar challenges. 

What is the best way to shortlist the market that works best for me, and find a good realtor for that market?