Sounds like the county failed on multiple levels including not giving proper notice, not sending notices to the correct address, etc. 

Calling the appraiser to see what you can do to push it up a "C-Level" would be smart before doing any reno also, might only need a few things to make it far more valuable in the eyes of the bank.I've heard of a tactic for figuring out demand, which is to put up a dummy or coming soon listing on facebook marketplace and see the amount of activity you get on it. 

If you want to fill your property with residents sourced from the companies above, imagine being the overworked, relatively low-level employee tasked with finding the appropriate housing ASAP.

As a self-managing landlord, I used to believe that almost everyone could learn the skill stack necessary to become a competent property manager.

We are about 2 of the 7 years into refinancing in the new interest rate levels.  

Would we be able to spend $1k in aquisition costs to get to that level?

But, you need to understand the intensity, time commitment, capital needed, and skill set required.  

Slowly build out a repeatable process...if you continue to change things (as in different types of properties, different levels of renovation, different finish material, different neighborhoods, etc.) you create more variables and make it harder to solve to the problem.I am a math guy and less unknowns/variables you have the easier the problem will be to solve. 

I think, the first, is understanding your goals, resources, and skill set.

You do that with skill, time, and reputation.