Sometimes people don't know because the atmosphere they are venturing into is so negatively charged (by comments) that they are afraid that someone will embarrass them with a negative response, when all they are trying to do is learn. 

So now we have conditioned when a person leverages self to the gill's, taken on mountains of debt and the grand some of there career is waiting tables or making coffee and some toilet-paper degree that a bajillion others also have, and maybe a few years experience at best. 

Just like the mountains (really San Lorenzo Valley) the outlying cities like Santa Cruz, Aptos, Monterey (and so on) are also very niche in their own way and especially when compared to the rest of the country.  

If you are looking for high appreciation, low cash flow - I would direct you to tech markets, coastal / mountain markets.

@Carlos Ptriawan I don't have any kids yet and no primary home, I still rent, houses here in Mountain View California are about 2 million.

All of these things prevent you from taking on a mountain of risk.

I definitely was a little concerned with the school districts, mostly because it will be my first deal so I thought it would give me a higher grade tenant and more rental demand, but I am the new guy in the business so maybe I'm making mountains out of molehills.

GC/Builders are King Sh#t of Tu#d mountain right now, they don't need you or your work, they don't need anyone's really, they rule the day, fact.

In my main niche, land and cabins for STR, you just can't get a concrete truck up on the mountain, or way the heck out, they will just say "no thanks" to your business...

The saying "it's who you know, not what you know" will move mountains.