So even if the "market" appreciation remains flat, but you can cut expenses (billing back for utilities instead of paying them your self) and move rents up slightly, you can add a lot of value to your property.  

Take some movers and shakers out to lunch.

I had a house mover to do the actual lift and hired all the subcontractors to do the rest of the trades workBest to hire a GC to handle structural repairs or lifting of houses out of the flood zone.

The wealthier neighborhoods have more and better stuff to steal.One technique I've heard about for 40 years is the brazen daytime robbers dressed as movers who show up at a house with a large moving van and empty it out while the neighbors watch (it happened on the street where I lived in the Rose Garden neighborhood of San Jose, California).

I live down here in Aberdeen.

You need to surround yourself around the right group of people (the movers not the shakers). 

If you wanted to try to move rent you might see if the tenant might want some improvements done to the property which you could do to get the higher rent and/or lock in a multi-year lease. 

However, based on what you mentioned above, I may consider refinancing it when I decide to move, rent it out for 5 years, then 1031'ing it into multiple properties with better cash flow. 

NO excuses, I didn't do nearly enough due diligence  during the crazy shuffle to identify properties, but I'm learning all kinds of things now, that would have been nice to know before:  On eviction, the landlord is responsible to hire movers to store her stuff for 3 months???

Fortunately I was able to move (rent free) & keep my SFR in LA which is currently being rented.