Whichever part of the couple is going to be on the mortgage, they need to be able to qualify independently for the mortgage.

You can find houses there within your price range given the current economy in houston but just make sure that whichever location you decide on that the numbers make since for rental purpose.

The trip was very expensive but while we were there I was fortunate enough to do 3 deals on-line & by cell phone that more than compensated for all expenses. 

You can make money in whichever areas you like, depending on what is affordable for you, your appetite for risk and what margins you want.  

Good luck whichever way it turns out.

I think the key is that you need a team in whichever market you're in.

Maybe get it appraised as is now and see what you could get for it now, and go for which ever option turns out to be better for you.This isn't experienced advice, I don't do flips, just what id do in that situation.

It helps you build credibility with other professionals (you know HML, Contractors Etc.)In AZ I learned from my CPA that from the founding of my LLC I can write off my entire cell phone and internet bills at home as they are essential in my home based business of real estate investing, without the LLC I was only allowed to write off the percentage portion based on the square footage designation I gave to my home office space, that is 10% in my case, which I still can use to write off part of my electric and mortgage payments since it is still used as home office.You can start building your brand now, rather than waiting and hoping that no one takes your company name/idea...

(I would advise if the answer is yes to make sure no viscous breeds are allowed and also get an extra security deposit and possibly extra monthly rent.)Also, something that helped us that you might want to consider is for your credit check is that the score matters, but we look deeper than the score if there are things that come up (and in New Brit there are usually things that come up).If tenants are skipping out on "modern life essentials" like utility bills, cell phone bills, car payments that is a huge red flag.However, if it is a result of medical bills or student loans (or possibly a foreclosure during the crash) you may want to look past some of those.

There are various solutions to this, but the one I use is that I always ask for a cell phone number that I can reach them at on the day of the showing.