Welcome to BiggerPockets, Richard! 

If the property is vacant, you will attract a larger pool of buyers as not everyone looking for a house wants to use it as a rental. 

Monthly costs are about 2k/month including fire insurance (high risk area).

Currently have a duplex I’ve been in 3 yearsMortgage 3.65% pmt $850Tenant pays $875Heloc $30k——monthly $291The issue I am running into isRates are so high right now and it’s a lot harder to find another that will cover full mortgage.Does it make sense to leave somewhere that it is full covered to go to one that is not?

You could get a loan from a local bank or private lender to fund it

(My credit score is sub-600; I know that makes it harder.)After rehab, I anticipate renting it for $1622/month through our county's Section 8 program.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage slipped slightly to 6.76% from 6.85% last week, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac.The number of homes actively for sale grew 27.5% compared to last year, the 16th straight month of growth.Newly-listed homes increased 4.2% year-over-year.The median price of homes for sale in February fell 0.8% to $412,000.Realtor.com also reports a growing number of listings with price reductions, with 16.8% of sellers cutting prices in the month of February.How long before we hit equilibrium? 

If you reduce to $2,300 and are able to fill the property faster, yes, you are "losing" $100 per month, but even at that rate, it would take two whole years to equal the loss of the $2,400 vacancy month.

For example, if the loan officer asks you what your monthly payments are and your mother-in-law moved in with you because she is struggling financially and you are paying her car payment, don't share that you are paying her car payment every month.

DENVER — Rent costs in the Denver-metro area recorded the largest monthly decline in the nation in January, according to Zillow’s monthly rental report.Denver was one of 11 major metro areas where monthly rental rates fell, leading the way at a 0.4% decline in January rent costs, the report shows.