Investing in Multi Family rental properties out of state

[Justin Blough]

I live in CA. Is there a website or a resource that provides operating cost and rental income for multi family homes to help an out of state investor decide if this is a good area, and if the props are worth taking a deeper look at? I'm looking to build upon my 1 SFH rental, with many multi family home purchases over the years to follow. I look on Zillow, but most properties do not show financials.

1. What is a good site to use to research properties?

2. Are there any recommended cities/areas with good cash flow, that are relatively affordable, i.e 50-75k/unit?

[Justin Blough]

1.  I have purchased one turnkey single family rental in Alabama.  Little equity in the buy, and little anticipated appreciation growth.  (hard to scale)

2.  Main goal is to grow total # of units for cash flow to be able to live off passive income within 10-15 years.

 Ideally looking to buy multiple units in a single purchase (multi-family).  I'd like to buy at a good deal to have some equity in at the beginning, but of course cash flow well to fund the purchase of the next multi deal, and so on.  After several years, have some equity, and possibly sell some properties and purchase larger unit properties.  

3.  Should I just randomly pick a few cities in the midwest and work with a realtor, or are there some suggestions on specific cities and resources to help hone in? (Basically, where do investors like myself that live in expensive CA, focus on to start growing our portfolio by investing out of state?