A little bit of background: I have a bachelors and masters in economics with a strong focus in statistics.

I come from a statistics background, so I throw out outliers that are very high or very low that might corrupt the data, and get a minimum of 4 comps.

I've posted pictures of my properties online for everyone to see.Third, when you say "last for a few months then flame out" I'm not sure where you're getting that statistic.

The U.S Census predicts by 2050 whites will not be the predominate race.Mexican,Latino etc. are predicted to be.The reason is Whites on average have 2 children or less.The Mexican,Latino community have very large families with 4 to 6 children on average per couple.It's simply math that over time they will overtake the White class by numbers.Asians will grow by a large number as well.These are actual statistics so please don't start any race or political stuff people.I think different races live differently so tenant mix will have an impact with investing moving forward.

@Tom Ott local knowledge can certainly outweigh market-level statistics, but here's what it looks like for the Cleveland MSA as a whole (which is Cleveland proper + surrounding areas):Still not good.

Statistically thats a 5 year lag. 

With options like this, it's easier to find cash flowing properties with a 4-7% Cash on Cash return.As stated above, population growth and retention are both good statistics to look for.

Check crime statistics- you can't hide that stuff.

Netural colors, earth tones, and clean is what sells houses...NAR had a statistic that said staged homes sell 56% faster than non-staged homes.

If a long distance horror story would statistically be likely to happen to me once every 10 years... then I will take my chances with long distance REI.