Utah and the areas I am looking at in the Salt Lake County/Utah County area seem to be too high to meet the 1% rule, and it seems to be harder to find deals that cash flow, but that could be because of my lack of experience. 

Well, at least it's much easier to gather 201 hours than 500 hours.

If it would concentrate on rent collection only and do it well, it might be okay.

In softer areas, like C- Detroit proper we are seeing lower demand.As always we recommend that rental comparisons need to be independently arrived at. 

In my area the number of properties on the market continues to be very small and prices remain elevated and I wonder if this could be a contributing factor.  

Instead of attempting to get some arbitrary guess on your costs, wouldn't it be more valuable to you to get a more precise figure?

The apartment requires substantial work to be completed prior to renting. 

Property managers frequently consider smaller properties unproductive, whereas larger properties allow for more efficient operations and the potential to hire an in-house property manager and maintenance team.With just under 20 units on the site, you must be hands-on.

Something needs to be done with fake gurus out there! 

Being furnished is also extra work, more things to break and be maintained.