Quote from @Jaycee Greene: Per your message, do you mind if I send you a connection request/direct message? 

However, I have no idea how to choose from the remaining cities, it seems there are a lot of potential options:- Midwest - Michigan (ie: Grand Rapids) seems to have options, also seeing Columbus Ohio and Indianapolis coming up- Reno - I've seen mentioned several times on here- Pittsburgh / Philadelphia / Twin Cities - All mentioned as lower cost to get started, and seem to be experiencing growthI'd ideally like to find a place that has strong potential for future growth, a diversified economy, and I don't mind living in (being close to nature would be a plus). 

I'm not saying that you need stick around with someone no matter how bad they are, just that you need to be mindful on your projects going forward. 

With historical inflation in mind, that mortgage is essentially an asset.

Keep in mind the following: 1) If you don't have enough cash for the entire purchase in the TSP rollover to IRA, your financing options would be limited to a non-recourse loan.

Thank you, @Mija Aguilera I will keep that in mind.

Here are some questions and ongoing considerations you should be mindful of:1.

It's more numbers than which neighborhoods.Keep in mind that Realtors really can't tell you this is a good place and this is a bad place. 

If you can, try to have an end result in mind.

Keep in mind that landlords in expensive markets aren't making an profit (cash-flow) on rent.