On a strictly ROI basis, the northern side of philly or west philly will probably give you better rent to value ratios from a cash flow perspective, however if you are planning to house-hack and have a more desirable place to live, I would look into more expensive properties in the university city/southwest philly area.

There are still some bad streets in South/West Durham, so make sure to talk with a local realtor who is an expert on the area before making a buying decision.Apex/Holly Springs/Wake ForestAppreciation and demand from core Raleigh have descended on these areas hard.

I'm seeing a pretty similar pattern - ~800 for a 1BR.More specifically, I'm seeing a baseline of $1/sq ft, less when you go south/west, more when you go north/east.  

All of my properties are in the near southwest suburbs of Berwyn and Lyons.

All of my investments are outside the City of Detroit.Harper Woods, MI (North West of Detroit) 
Grosse Point Woods, MI (West of Detroit) 
Grosse Point Farms, MI (West of Detroit) 
Hazel Park, MI (North of Detroit) 
Ferndale, MI (North West of Detroit) 
Southfield, MI (North West of Detroit) 
Redford, MI (East of Detroit) 
Dearborn, MI (South West of Detroit) 
Lincoln, Park South West of Detroit)Best of luck to everyone!

@Tashia K campbell may I suggest looking in south west PA.

I have a property in southwest San Antonio near Lackland AFB that my property manager is having trouble getting rented for 4 months.

@Engelo Rumora  jump up to PDX  cheaper to fly Southwest...

I was going to buy my last house with a southwest card, but couldn't figure out how to go to title with credit card funds and ended up paying cash. 

The Southwest is very popular.