I try to find out what expenses can be eliminated, decreased or offloaded to the tenant instead of just rely on rent hikes 

There are multiple resources to help you find a market and eliminate markets where you don't want to invest.

I find when looking for a market to use the elimination method.

So what I did is I looked at median prices of 2 bed condos between 800-1200sqft built between 1980-1990, I did this to eliminate new condos being added into the pricing pool, and look at this rollercoaster...Detached faired a LOT better, less variability in downturns, and much better return (for this chart I did not look at semi-detached, but the trend is closer to detached)

That eliminates the need for a good credit score, or a down payment, and the interest rate would be negotiable between you and your parents. 

Higher end firms do that for liability purposes and to help eliminate construction conflicts because trades do not talk to each other.

If you put a corporate accounting to eliminate standalone accounting such as QB and Xero.

Eliminate debt, establish a budget, and save.

I have an opportunity to raise capital with a private individual at a flat interest-only rate as a way to reduce interest charges and eliminate origination and service fees.

It's an awesome opportunity both ways to eliminate tax on real estate gain.