See if you feel like the place is in decline or if it is vibrant.

People living on the edge will have problems come up and I do believe that having policies that allow you to work with people having a temporary problem are CRUCIAL when managing these properties.Does you policy include a cut-off for "habitually late" tenants?

Me thinks this is a good bet to ride through any type of storm  and we were blessed to miss the last hurricane :)   I will be out there mid Oct to check on our projects I love it there if I was 20 years younger I would pack up and move there its so vibrant for real estate development..

@William SlaterWelcome to the vibrant BP community.

Hi Jeremy,I think a great ad is one with a vibrant and hyperlinked call-to-action photo that simply redirects to your Property Information Form for the seller to fill out.I honestly do not see how a generic We Buy Houses ad with a phone number is effective as you can at any time have a handful of leads call you up, block the lines and/or waste your time with their stories, questions, issues, etc.As mentioned, you should ultimately have a strong call-to-action that points back to your website/squeeze page for the seller to fill out their information.

@Phil Mcnally - I'd say heating bills are just as often covered by tenants here - and our economy is oil tied - but Anchorage is also a vibrant city that is a hub for the entire state - and locked between ocean and mountains land is at a premium.

Actually the ones with a discharged bankruptcy are some of the best because they have almost zero debt and can more easily pay the rent.The ones you have to watch out for are the ones carrying a ton of debt barely treading water.One little thing goes wrong and and it will all fall like a ton of bricks.Now if they habitually filed bankruptcy that might say something.You can look up bankruptcies and history of people online using the national system.If they have little to no money for a deposit ,bad credit,and want to move in on the weekend and say they love the place without asking questions..........RUN

Let them know you need them to make a good faith effort to pay the rent on or before the first of each month and let them know the grace period is there for extenuating circumstances, not to be used habitually. 

Habitual relapsers are too much for me to keep the trash away.  

Account Closed - Welcome to the vibrant BP community.Below, is the link to a blog that will get you well on your way to deal analysis.Good luck and best wishes with your REI activities.http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2010/06/30/introduction-to-real-estate-analysis-investing/