The lender I spoke to mentioned it would be 75% of the appraised value.

And no mention to the numbers which is the singular reason investors make a purchase and by which purchase price is formulated. - Then the mention of could you get a 10% down mortgage to buy it as an investment property....

I agree with the open discussion and other points Noah mentioned.

I know you mentioned credit + rental history but can you share exactly all the steps you go through and which tools you use?

Thanks for the mention @Nathan Gesner@Jodi-Ann Birch we don't do business up in Flint, but we have encountered Gebrael Management a few times as they've tried to do business in Metro Detroit.They seem to have good processes, but please validate they will meet your expectations.Recommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

Not to mention my Japanese friends who are in college all have cheap apartments by the college because they don't want to wake up at 5 am for a 2-hour commute to school.

If you're talking about available financing options, there are business purpose loans (like the debt service loan I mentioned) that sometimes ONLY allow you to close as an entity, like an LLC. 

As you mentioned here, we are also reducing our commission on certain deals whether its to make the #s work or to have the seller pay our entire fee.I also agree that many brokerages haven't prepared agents for this.

The original post mentioned Passaic County - but rent control will vary per municipality. 

I don't hear many people mention this about these inexpensive Midwest markets but the property tax increases can really reduce your cash flow.