My expectation is that rents will be flat this year for the most part, and then pick up steam over the next 2-5 years once we get the apartment inventory cleared out. 

Most tenants did not receive certified letter, or pick it up at the PO. 

Recommend you pick a piece of land in your area and do a line item analysis and post on here. 

just pick some friends so the dog don't cross it.

There's a lot of research you could do on VRBO/AirBNB/AirDNA to compare similar properties in terms of rates and occupancy, but my experience is that Gulf Shores and Orange Beach are more popular because of the nearby amenities, nightlight, recreation, and other things to do. 

I'm gonna assume you do know & I'll pick your brain, gain your confidence, and you'll tell me what I want to know about the deal 8 out of 10 times. 

I think you need to pick a horse and reason from there.  

I have a 2 bed 1400 sqft rowhouse.  Applicants are in mid- to late 20s.  Background and credit checks are excellent.  Both have cat (which is fine since never had mice when cat was on-site)1.  Couple, he's a post-doc ...

I drive a 95 nissan pick-up, Paid for, good milege Why spend 50k on a fancy car that will go down in value ( not counting collector vehicles) I would rather spent 50k on a down payment on more real estate for more cash flow

Pick your poison carefully though or it can cause a loss on both sides.