Given your situation, a property closer to Nashville might be more advantageous for short-term rentals like Airbnb, as proximity to a popular city typically attracts more guests and higher rental income.

Verifying last 2 years of rental history and income extremely important to find the “best of the worst”.Make sure you understand the Class of properties you are looking at and the corresponding results to expect.The City of Detroit has 183 Neighborhoods we’ve analyzed.DM us if you’d like to discuss this logical approach in greater detail!

Some commuters to Dallas, because rent is cheaper in Sherman than Dallas.As far as DFW metroplex goes, probably one of my favorite cities for investment right now.My thought is look at newer homes vs the 100 year old ones. 

Thus, we are looking into the Johnson City-Elizabethton area or the Kingsport-Bristol area.

Having a full renovated home in the inner city is like being a sitting duck.

@Virginia Frost What market/city are you targeting?

JBR gives good ROI, Palm does not.International City gives the highest ROI to date.I’ve plucked maybe 10-15 rental properties for each of these locations, and still adding more to see.

I work with Property Management in Houston but can recommend some great networking/educational events for you :) Check out Space City REI - there's monthly meetups with an educational speaker relating to real estate investing and there are plenty of Investors looking for Wholesalers out there! 

What states/cities make the most sense right now? 

Battery Park City Exchange (New York City): The city of New York engaged in a land swap with the Battery Park City Authority, allowing for the creation of a new public school and affordable housing units in exchange for a parcel of land that was then developed into a high-value commercial property. 5.