I would put a caveat on it that the best neighborhood should be defined as what you have a tolerance to manage. 

Good question First just wanted to make sure equity is understood.Let’s say the market value for a house is 100,000The owner has a mortgage for 80,000The owners equity is 20,000Now that equity is defined check this out: of the owner had a mortgage for 100,000 he would have 0 equity.

You cannot market or sell a property legally without a realtor licenseYou cannot provide financial advice or foreclosure rescue options without certain credentialsHow you define helping them, especially if they want to stay in their home

Can you define what in is you HOA that you consider house hacking to be a violation of? 

i missed the "rental property" component of the post.

Here are some of the reasons why: Compared to an IRA, Solo 401k contribution limits are roughly ten times higher.There is no custodial requirement for the 401k.You don't need the additional expense and administration of an LLC to have checkbook control.There is a built in-Roth component whereas IRAs are either traditional or Roth, not both.A spouse can also participate in the same Solo 401k plan.The Solo 401k has additional tax benefits over an IRA when investing into real estate using leverage.The penalties for prohibited transactions are less severe, though it's best not to utilize this benefit :)

@Jill Barrett start networking with other investors in the UP here on BP via search feature.Ask/pay an agent to generate a list of all the houses in an area you define have sold for cash in the last 12 months - pretty good sign an investor bought it.

What are the value add components that one should consider, like amenities.

To be regarded as a real estate professional, you must perform a substantial amount of real estate business, defined as more than half of your time, and at least 750 hours, spent in real estate trades or businesses. 

The rust belt is defined as parts US (northeastern) that are characterized by declining industry, aging factories, and a falling population.