Cleveland investors - What am I missing?

[Joe Liu]

Hi guys, I am an out of state investor and have been digging into Cleveland's market. Just wanted to get some insight from others who may have invested in the area and figure out what I am missing. Seems like you can pick up a SFR for $40-50k and get $800-850 in rents which is about the 2% rule. However, I see a huge chunk of inventory in this price range which seems too good to be true. So what am I missing?

My own homework - 

- An abundance of inventory at this price

- High property taxes

- High rents for the price

- Houses are all early 1900s

- Won't get much or any appreciation 

- The unemployment rate is high - 10%!

- POS fixes in some areas

Questions I still have -

What is the rental vacancy rate roughly?

What is the average amount of time it takes to rent out one of these SFR?

If I need to sell, how many days on average does the home sit?

What are some pitfalls some investors are seeing? I am only looking at A, B and C neighborhoods. Based on those prices, seeing a lot of C and maybe some B- areas. 

Any links to future development or anything coming into Cleveland that might help with jobs or appreciation?

With the houses being in the early 1900s, what kind of maintenance are you typically seeing each year? Besides the roof, electrical and HVAC, any other large items?

Just trying to figure out what I don't know that might be obvious to someone local or something I should know before purchasing in this market.