Commercial programs a heavily dependent on location and NOI (less one size fits all compared to residential). 

That would show you exactly what they are each looking at to compare your property

Housing is still affordable compared to other markets, which keeps renters and investors coming.

I'm not saying you're doing this, but people will often make the mistake of looking into the highest priced rental unit and making that the "market rate" but it's often not a true comparable to the subject.

I imagine cost of labor might be a little bit cheaper in Idaho compared to Connecticut as we ended up paying 10k for gas furnace and 5k for AC with 10 yr warranty for Lennox product.  

Our 275 sq ft furnished garage should rent for $1600 - $1800/mo and the only extra fees compared to long term is $99/yr to post on furnishedfinders.com. ...I should have this finished by the end of next month, so can keep you updated on whether this plan works and what we rent for. 

Since you can't control the sale price, you basically have a $4k cushion to your reno costs, or otherwise you lose money compared to the as-is scenario.

While these vendors are typically reputable and skilled, you might not get the best price compared to shopping around directly.

The article is off because it is comparing two different types of buyers.  

Downtown Charleston experienced a significant surge, with home prices increasing by 33.2% compared to the previous year, resulting in a median price of $1.2 million.