Your estimate seems low, but even at that cost, it will not add that value.  

We also live in a reasonably low cost of living area compared to the rest of the nation where the home prices we are looking at for rentals are between $200K and $250K. 

They must be very low odds because insurance companies are in the business of making money, not paying out maximums.

I doubt many tech workers are located in that neighborhood. 

Quote from @Jaycee Greene: Assuming you pay asking price, I'd estimate the down payment for something like that using a hard money loan (HML) would be around 40% of the purchase price and your monthly payment would be $2,600 with an interest rate in the low 7% range (probably need a 700+ credit score to get that).

C & D neighborhoods in an around Cleveland would probably be what you want to do.

Really interested in investing in this market and would accept a relatively low return (or even a break even scenario because i believe in continued appreciation potential here). 

And maybe diversify a little, invest half in a low cost S&P500 fund like VOO and the split the rest across 2 or 3 syndications.

Note the property tax will be -10% on the rent by itself.Month 0 to 24: $2450 * 0.5 - $1573 =-$348/monthMonth 24 to 60: $2450 * 0.5 - $1541 =-$316/monthNext issue is due to the low leverage starting at month 24, the ROI takes a beating.  

@Mattin Hosh first, most cities in Metro Detroit have some type of rental property inspection every 2-3 years.It's not really a big deal 99% of the time - especially for owners who are NOT slumlords:)Also, a quick Google search will show that several states/cities are passing/considering similar legislation.One of the biggest mistakes we see newer investors making is NOT properly understanding Neighborhood/Property/Tenant Classes and naively assuming that any rental they buy will deliver Class A results.Read our copy & paste thoughts below and DM us if you'd like to dicuss more about the Detroit market:)-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?