Small investor new to south Florida market

[Lori Hunter]

Hello all. I just joined BP hoping to gain a little more education on owning single family rentals. My husband and I own a 3br rental property in North carolina that is currently quite profitable. We have about 100k equity in this house and only have about 20k remaining on the mortgage. We would like to now invest in a second property closer to where we are in Delray Beach (south) Florida. My concern is that property costs here seem to be rising pretty quickly and most good houses are being scooped up quickly by cash buyers (lots from overseas). And, the 2% purchase price to rent rule just doesn't seem to be adding up here. Any advice for the smaller investor who's not yet a cash buyer to get into this local market and not get swallowed up by it? There seems to be a wealth of knowledge on here. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.