The threat of large losses arising from liability has alot to do about your area, the court system and the prevailing political and social environment.

Don't hesitate to reach out to me. if you love socials follow me on Instagram @The_great_santanaLooking forward to providing value to you all...with many blessings, - Dylan Santana 

Most sellers won’t accept offers directly from buyers without representation, especially if it’s on-market.

It's a local REI meetup that's on the first Tuesday of every month at Red Stick Social on Government St.

Quote from @Michael Baum: Hey @Sushil Gupta, important statementCity No Longer Accepting Applications for Non-Hosted STRs:To apply for a Hosted STR, the property owner must live and sleep on the property, and the property must be the owner’s principal residence (where the owner resides for more than one-half of the year)So unless you plan to live in the place you are short term renting, Santa Rosa is a no go.https://www.srcity.org/3625/Short-Term-Vacation-Rentals one might try Guerneville or Monte Rio  area that is geared towards tourists..

Additionally, you can check community forums or social media groups related to the neighborhood for firsthand accounts from residents.It's also helpful to reach out to local real estate agents who have in-depth knowledge of the area.

Although once we have an offer accepted, we will shop around for other rates just to be sure. 

.: Hi everyone,If the seller accepts my offer, I’ll soon be under contract on my first investment property, a 2,184 sq ft duplex in Columbus, Ohio, built in 1925 and located in a C-class neighborhood.

Docusign wouldn't work for this, and I have concerns about the true security of Dropbox and similar cloud storage (contact support for any of these providers and the support person almost always has complete access to your files - doesn't feel secure enough to me for storing borrower social security numbers or statements with bank account numbers visible).In researching how other private lenders are operating, I see many of them have custom websites with (assumed) encrypted backends - as a small lender, the cost of custom web presence is prohibitive and probably unnecessary until I reach a higher deal flow.So am I overthinking this aspect?

You'll want to find one that is just a local company and ask for proof they are setup to handle Class C & D neighborhoods/properties/tenants.Read on for some copy & paste advice about this:Recommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.