As soon as I can cross the borders and meetup are allowed I'll make sure to attend a few one to meet more people in the area. 

Investing is gambling. 

Our house borders a wooded area around the lake so theire is wildlife around.

The hands on aspect of real estate is literally the best part, sometimes the stock market can feel like a gamble.

I think that everyone's circumstances are different and you should speak with a cross border specialist.

In our situation, to get anywhere close to a decent cash-on-cash return, I'm guessing we'd have to limit ourselves to studios and 1BD condos within the city, or properties just across the border in Maryland or Virginia.

I don't think these numbers work to begin with and using appreciation as a banking factor is kind of like gambling in Vegas.

That would be a fair deal for bucktown if numbers are accurate and it's actually within the border of bucktown proper (many agents lie about this)...

This is what actually Is costs you to get your equity, you are paying every month out of pocket.look your property looks good if all 4 units where rented your analysis that it will appreciate with out doing any value add is a bet on appreciation and rent increases year over year is a huge gamble and only pays off when you sell and if you sell at that price at the right time. 

Mc Allen TX on the Mexican border also does not have a WFM so it was not included.