@Michael Wentzel
If you're interested in OSU's campus area you may want to keep this in mind...http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2014....
It may not make much of an impact in the long run but it's something to bear in mind that the numbers may change in the next year or two. But you're not going to find $30,000 houses close enough to campus for kids to rent anyway.
That being said, Columbus is a great market, but the majority of $20,000-$30,000 houses on the MLS that I've found will be in a few somewhat sketchy areas. Mainly Franklinton, Olde Town East, The Hilltop and North Linden. I don't know much about North Linden so I can't give you much insight there. The other areas have potential deals but A LOT of vacant houses so you'll really need someone with boots on the ground to give you a good idea because it can vary greatly from street to street.
In my mind if you're flipping, Olde Town East has a ton of potential because they're big beautiful houses that can be very appealing and can reach the $300,000-$400,000 ARV in certain areas. That being said, stay North of Main St. Way too many vacants anywhere south of Main.
Franklinton has recently received a lot of media attention because there's a concentrated effort by the city to gentrify the area (though they are obviously trying to avoid that term). They've already made a lot of progress on the Art District in East Franklinton and they've recently released a plan for West Franklinton. But in my opinion the plan is probably about 5-10 years away from getting the neighborhood where they want it. If you want to read more about their plan you can at http://columbus.gov/planning/westfranklinton/. There is a ton of market research done for you already there including average rents, vacancy rates and what they plan for each part of the area.
Anyway, hope that's helpful just my 2 cents.
