To my mind, that is the WRONG question to ask if you're thinking about investing in areas where you think you'll probably have to evict sooner or later to get rid of tenants, to wit, low-C-minus areas shading into D-class, or (if you think that's what you want) the cheapest of the cheap war-zone, D-class areas.I live and operate in PA, in Allegheny County, to be specific in the geographical City of Pittsburgh and just outside in some of the near suburbs.

It provided me the only shade and privacy I had from the development.  

No wrong or right, just shades of different.anyway,  interesting idea to look at.

The cabinets are already finished, so you would need to prep (i.e. strip, sand) them before you could attempt to re-stain them a darker colour.You would still have to prep them to paint, but only a good sanding and appropriate primer is need.  

Also, if anyone has any suggestions on the color of the shutters with white trim and a darker gray paint that advice would be helpful as well.

All it needed was a coat of paint in a few rooms (bedrooms were: pink; two shaded of purple with black trim; red, grey and black) and they'd patched all the holes in the walls (from hanging pictures), so they looked really bad.

Its  materials are of builder quality (vs a hotel's more industrial quality), so the wear shows.As for the unit, the issues I have seen are:Walls repaired then repaired over with paint of a different shade; it is a patchwork of color and paint finishesBathroom door hook missing; ripped out of door.Toilet seat missing 2 feet (so it wobbles)Stand up shower separating from the drywall (large vertical crack)Mold outside the shower glass doorsGlass rotating plate missing from microwaveElevator call button surround smashed and cut upAcoustics between floors are terrible or we have Elephants in the STR upstairs.It is clear that the cleaning staff is either not reporting the issues to the local room wrangler or they just don't care that much. 

You and your grandma have a couple of great options with many shades of gray in between.If you are buying your grandmother's house, and she is gifting you equity, there is a super easy way. 

@Carl Crump..I'm not trying to throw shade, but if someone is seriously buying a hotel right now in the $35MM range, they shouldn't be looking for financing on Biggerpockets. 

I saw a real estate investor paint the outside of their building a popular shade of grew and trim on the building a creamy white.