Some of it has to do with the fact that the market for a higher priced property is fundamentally different than the market for a lower priced property.For instance, let's say you had a very expensive rental that you were trying to rent for $10k/month.

But prices being paid are still not justified by the underlying fundamentals in many cases.  

Investors are selling their real estate because... they paid too much for it and did not follow basic fundamentals. 

Depending on how they are done, these alterations can ruin a property, or if you are lucky, thought went into the alterations and the old doors and trim were saved in the basement, making the restoration of the real charm somewhat easier.To summarize, you really need to understand fundamental construction and either have plenty of experience to know what you are looking at, or Pros you can truly trust and rely on to adequately evaluate your opportunity and provide numbers that hold true to a high degree.

Right now, I'm more interested in learning the fundamentals of finding great deals.

Lowering your expenses while increasing income is the fundamental recipe for building wealth, and a HH accomplishes this in a single step. 

I follow the most fundamental three rules of REI: location, location, location. 

"Would I live in this house" is the fundamental question you need to ask yourself.

Downside protection is a big reason a lot of folks include CRE in their portfolio.I'd also argue that vetting Operators isn't THAT much more intensive than vetting funds, especially when you know the fundamentals of what to look for and can you streamline the process.

Sounds like it comes down to the fundamentals: good screening and decent areas.