You can find something in Durham and parts of Raleigh, specifically zips 27610, 27603, and parts of 27604 that would meet your criteria, however generally speaking most of the inventory that would fit what you are looking for in Raleigh or Durham would likely be in neighborhoods that I personally wouldn't want to invest in, C- to D type neighborhoods.

I am not sure which is best for our situation or what to pitch.

They were general questions, not specific to my account but extremely helpful.

That would almost always be from the same lender who has a 1st AND 2nd on the property and they are just fed up with the owner and are taking the opportunity to get out of a bad situation entirely.Sorry, it's complex enough that it isn't a 15 minute class.

I would like to do some research on other rental properties before I set my priceComputer algorithms are good for studying a general market, maybe even a neighborhood, but they are terrible for evaluating a specific rental.

I'd talk to brokers in your specific asset class and market.Do you already own similar assets?

But this was an awesome opportunity for me because this is my first living situation where I will be on my own (and getting used to paying a rent/mortgage) but this will put my overall mortgage on a 400k house at roughly $2000 a month for the first year!

You'll have to run them yourself according to your goals, timeline, and financial situation. 

Is there a specific challenge you are trying to solve for? 

I recommend considering your cash flow and debt-to-income ratio before making a decision, and consulting with a financial advisor to tailor the choice to your specific needs.Good luck!