(metro statistical area)  here is a link to the most recent data from Census.gov In the opinion of many experienced investors (and by experienced I mean investors who have been around the block a few times and have had both success and failure) including myself, the market is what you look at first.  

That aside though, if you were lucky enough to buy some of those apartments/condos downtown in 2010-11 and held on, I bet you're doing well.The statistics on the news here is that wayne county (that encompasses Detroit city proper) property values have come back quite a bit. 

And as I prepare an offer package, how can I show statistically how this will benefit him  in the long run over other options such as renovation or selling as is and listing?

Be wise to not follow in the unspoken statistic.  

Now that we are a littler larger, we do not maintain a 6-month reserve for each property as statistically we are less prone to have catastrophic vacancy or major repairs across the entire portfolio.  

Do you just google the area and see crime rate statistics?

If you don't have cash reserves to fight back to the top, your mortgages can get missed and  soon you can become a statistic. 

I look at the property and the statistics before coming up with a cost per unit. 

That's why I was asking...I have no statistics to back it up, but from postings here, it appears that HOA foreclosures are 1) quite common in FL, and 2) done there more than anywhere else.The plan you layed out sounds more like they might break even on their court/attorney costs, and getting someone in there to actually pay the dues is a big maybe on both when and if.Nope. 

Over 40,000 tournaments it would have been a tremendous statistical anomaly for me to lose money assuming I was a good player.