The quality of answers to your are directly correlated to the quality of your questions asked.  

We have spent the last several years reading (rich dad poor dad, total money makeover, etc.), listening to bigger pockets and other podcasts, and learning about real estate.

I've heard nothing but complaints from customers AND their franchise agents reegarding the quality of their 800-number service center. 

And you can be a landlord that gets a very poor return because they haven't utilized their space well by changing the layout.

@Nick Henry this also comes down to how much time you have available and how much effort you are able to put into purchasing a home or building and doing renovations and then finding quality residents to live and take care of your asset.

Crime and Tenant Quality: With the higher crime rate in 76104, how much impact could this have on tenant retention and turnover?

It's mostly Class A properties, a few Class B.You may find the below copy & paste info useful in addressing your question:----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

It took more time and back and forth communication than was needed, and compared poorly with other refinancings we have gone through.

Shooting for three 8 foot logs of high quality.  

Could be a business decision based on keeping long-term high quality tenants rather than risk the costs on turnover.