I have 12-doors there and am staying active.I actually grew up in northern Michigan but came out to the Bay Area for college, stay for more than a decade after that, and then relocated from Walnut Creek to Metro Detroit from 2017-2022.We grew our portfolio from 0 - 12 doors between 2019-2021 with the goal of generating at least $15k/mo in gross rents so we could move back to CA without sacrificing lifestyle. 

I got tired of making 6 figures and not really getting much of a lifestyle out of it.

I do not know another way to get ahead in Seattle right now...Not without making unacceptable lifestyle sacrifices.

I love my day job but I also know I can leave any timeAnd live the same lifestyle .

@Nicholas L.Yeah a couple reasons:1) dont have the capital for a down payment even with FHA 3.5% 2) lifestyle reasons (i want to live in SF proper)3) dont necessarily like the SF market for investing

"Rent by the room" is definitely the way to go though from an investment perspective if it works for your lifestyle.

Im living the lifestyle I want to live, no 9-5  job, and the only headache I have is the wife telling me I should do more deals as I never work anyway (according to her). you want to be efficient go for it.

Some other pros would be weather, globally sought after, growing infrastructure across the state to accomodate high speed rail, space industry, we have several major airports, growing tech/medical industries as well as the ever growing theme park monsters that help to bring in about 70 million people a year here, we stay pretty purple with politics and very alternative lifestyle friendly, schools overall aren't great, but we do have some very good ones including prep schools/acadamy's. landlord friendly and so much more too!

Oh, and you CAN control your spending & lifestyle....though this one is often the most painful for brokers & investors who were used to living far above the bare minimums.Practical steps to get lean & mean: Cut ALL unnecessary expenses.

I meet far too many people who make six figures and have almost no savings, because of their lifestyle choices.Focusing on the Right MarketsThere isn't such a thing as "the best market".