The study identifies with forensic engineering detail the immediate Bonus Depreciation 5, 7 and 15-year personal property class lives qualifying portions of a building that are normally buried in 27.5 year residential or 39 year commercial categories.

I chose the hardest deal to pursue for my first deal, as it was a fractured condo but i identified that it was a great deal and dove head first.

Before I finished reading your post, I was getting prepared to respond with exactly what you have identified in your final paragraph.I'd sell this house for sure and redeploy the capital into something else that can generate 7-8%+ cash on cash returns.Some might argue that SoCal is more of an appreciation play and that your appreciation will outpace your cashflow in any other market.

How good are you at identifying problems and finding a solution?

I could use help identifying my options for what to do with utilities.

I identified a hot market (Columbus OH) and analyzed many SFH/duplexes on and off market and found that the CoCs I'm getting are negative (A/B) to at best 2-3% (B-/C). 

Identify the spots in your immediate area, that most likely will appeal to a majority of investors, as you grow your knowledge and buyer base, you can get into those areas that might not immediately appeal to the masses.

I would do a back of the napkin check of this by:Googling the name of the apartment complex and checking google reviews, as well as sifting through pictures to see if there was a very clear and present “value add” to be had.Skip tracing the LLC’s that owned these buildings to identify whether it was a viable target (REITs generally aren’t worth the call).Skip tracing the owners of the LLC and exhausting all resources to contact them.

Next have you underwritten several deals and identified a specific property?

You already identified their problems, so how can you help?