But if I'm going somewhere with my wife for any length of time, I like the space afforded us by a vacation rental, the kitchen for cooking, a living room for spreading out.

Walkthroughs are never detailed enough to be final (ie often tenants have lower disconnected and discover broken appliances later.) 

That kitchen looks good but needs more stuff so families can cook and eat there.I think you guy look good in the photos, but it can be a turn off to prospective guests so I would remove those.

I have one that is a good fix-it man, but I'm doing a full gut reno and I need help removing a cast iron sewer stack and rough-in 2 bathrooms and kitchen to this new stack.

Licensed with permits ~$4,000.Full replacement of all water supply lines and shutoffs from the interior water meter with PEX and an open basement.  1 kitchen 1 bath 1 laundry. 

One thing most host don't do is stock the kitchen up well. 

The property seems to be in good shape and will requirecosmetic rehab.  5/3 house 2600 SQFTWe will need a new AC, Kitchen upgrade, bathroom upgrade, flooring, painting, andcarpet upstairs.  

they said around 90% of market value.I tried to get them to understand that this property needs a LOT of work, almost a full gut, some holes in walls (small) old carpet needs to be ripped up, i mean like the works on this thing, you can prob get away with touching up the kitchen since its real hardwood and the bathrooms as well but this prop needs at least 80k.Found out owner actually owes 140k on property, and zillow is zestimating it to be 127k.

Keep in mind local zoning laws and market conditions in Portland versus Salem—Portland might offer higher rents but stricter regulations, while Salem could provide better cash flow opportunities.Your design approach has proven successful, so continue focusing on appealing upgrades like kitchens and bathrooms, but prioritize cost-effective and durable materials for rentals.

Ideally you have not replaced roof, hvac, flooring, kitchen, bathroom, fencing, windows, foundation repairs, hard scape repairs, electrical, plumbing, etc.