to keep in the general conversation though I do think relaying on fast growth with a BRRR strategy like people have been able to over the last decade is on life support.

In 10 years, that's $60,000.I suspect your equity is worth 4x that amount.Stick with the equity growth.

Economists note that job growth in typically underreported industries fell by 42,000 compared to the 6-month average, suggesting August’s numbers may understate actual gains.Key Employment GainsConstruction: +34,000 jobs, driven by heavy civil engineering and nonresidential trade contractors.Healthcare: +31,000 jobs, though slower than the past year's monthly average of 60,000.Social Assistance: +13,000 jobs, with more modest growth compared to previous months.Other growing sectors include financial activities, wholesale trade, and government (+24,000 jobs).Job Losses and Sector StrugglesManufacturing: -24,000 jobs.Retail: -11,100 jobs.Temporary help employment continues to shrink, reflecting business uncertainty.Wage and Fed Policy ImplicationsWages rose by 0.4% in August, up 3.8% year-over-year, supporting a cautious approach by the Federal Reserve on deeper rate cuts.

is there a particular formula that takes all manner of factors, (employment growth, corporation development news, barrier to entry, rental rates, wage growth, etc) into account and spits out an "invest in city X" answer?

Don't leave your w2 until your RE portfolio can support your minimum requirements AND you can see a path to continued growth in the RE portfolio.

Not an easy task.

Future Growth: Once you grow your portfolio, transferring to an LLC can be a good strategy to limit your liability.

The city also enjoys consistent annual population growth and ongoing large business activity/investment.  

The most common benefits a landlord can get from an arbitrage agreement are: reduced vacancy expense, decreased maintenance costs (most arbitragers agree to fix any damage done by guests), increased rent (most pay a premium), reduced number of hours managing the property (aka it's more passive)Some less common benefits, but still worth mentioning: Using the property to host their own guests at a lower rate during the "vacation season", Revenue sharing, arbitrage managing landscaping, and other management tasks. 

I'm happy that we were able to witness SC's growth, and mine at the same time.