Here’s a breakdown of some top areas:Cash Flow-Friendly NeighborhoodsWest Charlotte: Known for affordability and strong rental yields, West Charlotte offers opportunities in single-family and small multi-family properties.Gastonia: Just outside of Charlotte, Gastonia is a great spot for investors seeking cash flow.

I personally believe single family produces the best rents and appreciation.

The larger, family centered houses near the beach are nearly 50/50.  

Very hard to find multi-family properties that cash flow in this A market. 

I think if you can nail that down you will be able to find a market easier.As a buy and hold investor some of the things that were important to me when deciding on a market were landlord tenant laws, price to rent ratio, housing demand, ability to build a team, large population 500K plus, multi-family availability and some other factors.take the process step by step and you will be fine. 

They were seeking secondary homes for their family that could be rented to help offset costs and didn't require an immediate or transferrable permit.

., "I will buy at least one single-family home, duplex, triplex, or fourplex before the end of 2019") and then do it.

I'd be looking at multiple structures. we try to build below the average new build cost in our market in Columbus Ohio which is 515,000 last year and we target land 40-50k and urban core adjacent where we get higher price per square foot. we build for clients with margin around $190 a sq ft depending on multi or single. we can get that down in our triplex it's a little higher on our single family homes because of garages and limited economies of scale. hope that helps. idk Philly but if you show me the area and styles of homes I can give you some more insights. 

I live in CA and drove that route for years to visit family in Phoenix, AZ. 

Investment Info:Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Valdosta.