Im not comfortable going more than that. 

Sellers are still wanting "too much" as they typically think their deals should still be trading in the 4-5% cap rate range.While I won't pretend to have a crystal ball, I generally think: a) if you want to get a deal today, you are going to need to be more aggressive then you probably are comfortable with in your assumptions.  

Though I am not in that area, I am only a few hours away so I would definitely feel comfortable investing in that area for my first one.

I have always been more comfortable wearing my work boots than I ever have been in a suit.

Most folks feel comfortable with any hold of more than a year. 

You might as well scale up & get the largest house you can comfortably afford

Why is it that they are comfortable being recognized as the owners with far more assets on the table and  then smaller property owners spend money and effort to conceal their identities? 

Low Money, Lots of time, Go getter attitudeWholesaling, Rental ArbitrageLow Money, Little time, Generally friendly, willing to sacrifice comfort for future wealthHouse Hacking, Long Term RentalsLots of money, Lots of time, Can hire out teams to do work for you.

If the answer's a no, then keep dialing back the price until you hit that sweet spot - ie. the amount you are comfortably able to afford. 

I suppose we could go back and fourth on the validity of your example of the rent / fight / murder, but for now the purpose of what I am saying here is if a customer isn't comfortable with the contract, their time is better spent moving on to a different PM than spending time and money trying to change their contract, cuz it ain't happening.