Focus on absentee owners and start with the ones who live the farthest away and only own one property in the area since they have the least use for the property.You can also drive for dollars, looking for anomalies of disrepair and then look them up in the tax records and use a site like Spokeo to do cheap skip tracing.

I would love to hear any suggestions about where I should look to live in the area. 

However, if you choose to stay there for a bit and sell you'll get the first $500K of profit tax-free if you've lived in it for at least 2 out of the 5 years prior to sale.

We love to take care of the students that live in our apartments the best we can with amenities!

Unfortunately, over the 11 months he has lived there, he has only managed to pay the rent on time once.

We lived in a little apartment above the garage and rented out the main portion of the house. 

Hi Davis,I live in NC but invest primarily in Greenville SC / upstate with my business partners. 

Since they've lived there so long, I recommend giving them 60 days to move as a means of softening the blow.Third, don't negotiate or accept excuses.

I live in the Washington DC area, and I would love to connect with anyone willing to. 

You won't find a deal where you live for free, but if you can live in a great neighborhood at a reduced cost of living that is a nearly risk free way to get started in real estate.