With a budget of $300K-$400K, you could potentially find single-family homes or small multi-units in those areas.I'd recommend researching rental demand near universities like Duke or NC State or even checking out neighborhoods with strong job growth near tech hubs.

Most investors make the same rookie mistake: They focus on problems instead of people.
Telling sellers everything wrong with their house and justifying your offer with repair costs doesn’t build trust—it kills it.
...

It is the reasonable rental value without the new improvements, because the tax sale investor did nothing to add value regarding the improvements. 

It is not typical that you will find SF deal after deal, and if you are actively marketing for distressed sellers many...most...will want cash sales.

Quote from @Thomas McPherson: Quote from @Brenden Stadelman: I work wholesale in central Indiana and have a full sales team.

@Chris Seveney basically treating it as a sale of assets and having to pay capital gains.

If you are looking to list the portfolio, the agent could do Loopnet and the MLS.If you are looking for a private sale I have a few investors that I could shop it to, as well some private groups that I am a member of.

One big one is that scaling the lease option sale to a homeowner will attract both public regulatory scrutiny and private litigation, perhaps class action, once it reaches a certain threshold.  

there is no bank, no mortgage, and therefore no due on sale clause.if there is a mortgage in place, and you take the payments over, this is typically referred to as subject-to or sub2 and is much higher risk for everyone involved.

When the smoke clears after a sale, everything falls to the buyer's responsibility.