They should know more than the people at a big box store and be able to recommend a good one. 

a lot of people will poo poo this, but I also live in a market where cash flow is low, property taxes are high and properties are expensive (which is a relative term).

When you say you want to prioritize cash flow over equity, you want to watch out for people honing in on that and selling you "good cash flow" deals which will be in D neighborhoods and will come with high capital expenditures and harder tenancies.

🤔 Anyway my point is you need to surround yourself with likeminded people.  

What we have learned is that most people avoid these properties entirely, which allows us to purchase them at a significant discount.

I understand different people have different risk profiles.

See what a difference it will make for people to know you have 13 years in.

I am on the other side of the bridge in Virginia - there is a good amount of DC area people here on BP

You also want to go to real estate investor meetups to get reps with people who do what you want to do.

High property prices mean fewer people can afford to buy, so more people rent.