My wife is a RN but has had to take an administrative position due to health reasons.

Drive towards a solution where you and the tenant come to an agreement and try to remember that he's human...driven by emotional reason. 

You need humans involved in the equation to get the more accurate picture.3) The book talks about buying a property for 20% discount, and by adding 5% it should appreciate by 10% in 1 yr.

Banks will still require a human to review and sign off on values

I'm definitely learning as much as I humanly can right now, reading books, listening to podcasts and audiobooks, watching videos and webinars and even taking the real estate agent class.

As to the income, many people on here can attest that it's actually not hard to live on $50k when you have no mortgage, no car payments, no other debt, you have health coverage, low taxes, etc, and fortunately that number goes to $60k next year without considering any other cash flow (purchase of rentals, may pick up part time work myself for extra savings, etc.).

What about the value of "hoods" as a RE investment and as a human potential?

Not to mention the parking garages and health facility they built for company use. 

Are you asking because you want to understand the financial health of the HOA or so you know which ones you should market too?

Another option is habitat for humanity, they have a location in Houston.